A fishing boat packed with an estimated 700 people seeking refuge in Europe capsized north of the Libyan coast, in what may become the most deadly such tragedy in the Mediterranean.
Italy and Malta immediately deployed navy and coast guard ships in an effort to rescue survivors. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said Sunday that 28 bodies had been recovered and that the number is "bound to increase." Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said 49 people had been rescued.
"If confirmed, this would be the largest tragedy ever in the Mediterranean involving migrants," Muscat said in a telephone interview. "Nobody should be allowed to die this way."
Muscat said by text message that he and Renzi agreed in a phone conversation to call for an urgent European Union summit on migrants and refugees voyaging across the Mediterranean.
Italy has faced a wave of migrants and refugees from Africa and the Middle East who board rickety vessels in Libya, paying human traffickers to take them over the Mediterranean Sea to seek a haven in Europe. Italian politicians have been seeking increased international support to cope with the influx.
A Maltese military official, who asked not be identified, confirmed Italian news reports that about 700 migrants were on board when the boat left the Libyan port of Zuara. The official said the boat capsized about 61 nautical miles (113 kilometres) north of Libya late Saturday.
