← Latest briefing

World News

At least two dead and about 12 missing after migrant boat capsizes off Tunisia

Tunisian authorities deployed search boats and a helicopter after a commercial vessel rescued one survivor from a capsized boat headed toward Italy.

The short version

  • A migrant boat carrying roughly 15 people capsized off the southern coast of Tunisia after departing between Zarzis and Ben Guerdane.
  • A commercial ship rescued one survivor on Saturday, while authorities recovered two bodies and transported them to Djerba.
  • Search teams deployed a helicopter and coast guard vessels to look for approximately 12 people who remain missing at sea.

Key facts

  • A boat carrying approximately 15 migrants capsized off the southern coast of Tunisia after departing early Thursday between Zarzis and Ben Guerdane.[ABC News · Associated Press]
  • A commercial ship discovered and rescued a single survivor wearing a life jacket on Saturday.[ABC News · Associated Press]
  • Tunisian National Guard spokesperson Houssem Eddine Jebabli confirmed the recovery of two bodies, which were sent to a hospital on Djerba.[ABC News · Associated Press]
  • Authorities dispatched coast guard boats and a helicopter to search the area for the estimated 12 missing passengers.[ABC News · Associated Press]

What remains uncertain

  • The exact total number of passengers aboard and the identities of those missing have not been definitively confirmed beyond estimates provided by authorities and the survivor.[ABC News · Associated Press]

Sources