Another tragedy at sea, in the Libyan Sar area, 120 miles north of Benghazi.
There are allegedly several victims on the dinghy with 47 migrants on board who had been asking for help since Saturday morning, reports the NGO Alarm Phone which has been re-launching the requests for assistance received from the ship since yesterday, asking the Italian authorities to coordinate the rescue efforts.
“We are shocked – writes Alarm Phone on Twitter -. Dozens of people drowned, from 2.28 on 11 March the Italian authorities were informed of the dangerous situation and deliberately delayed the rescue, leaving them to die».
The boat capsized this morning, 47 people on board, almost all missing. Rome yesterday asked the Libyan Coast Guard to intervene, but the ships were never mobilised.
Several reports have been made since yesterday by Alram Phone and Sea Watch, which had sighted the boat in trouble with its reconnaissance plane: «We have lost contact with the 47 people and we are very worried, the so-called Costiera Libyan told us that the Italian authorities would coordinate the rescue but did not give any information. People must be saved and brought to Europe now», Alarm Phone wrote in the night.
From Rome, a passing merchant vessel ("Not equipped for rescue") had been asked to remain in the area to monitor the situation.
Sea Watch also accuses Italy: "The small boat sighted yesterday by our reconnaissance plane was not rescued in time, another failure to rescue, more tragedies".
(Unioneonline/L)
