.jpeg)
This is only the latest in a series of migrant boats capsizing off Tunisia's coast in the past few days, with five other boats sinking in the previous four days.
This follows Tunisia's launch of a campaign against African migrants without documentation.
Meanwhile, officials from Italy on the island of Lampedusa claim to be overwhelmed after a record 2,500 migrants arrived in the last 24 hours.
The Prime Minister of Italy's far-right, Giorgia Meloni, has cautioned that Europe risks seeing a significant influx of refugees arriving on its shores.
Tunisia has become a hub for migrants seeking to reach Europe, with UN data indicating that at least 12,000 migrants who arrived on Italy's shores this year departed from Tunisia. In the same time period last year, this figure was only 1,300.
However, the Tunisian coast guard says it is taking measures to prevent migrant crossings, having halted around 80 vessels bound for Europe in the last four days, according to Reuters. The same agency also claims that over 3,000 migrants have been detained.
In a contentious speech last month, Tunisia's president accused sub-Saharan African migrants living in the country of causing a crime wave and referred to them as a demographic threat.
Kais Saied's remarks were broadly criticised by the African Union and labelled "racist hate speech" by human rights organisations.
These comments have left some sub-Saharan Africans living in Tunisia in fear, with some reporting an increase in racist incidents.
As a result, some countries, such as Ivory Coast and Guinea, have repatriated their citizens due to an increased climate of intolerance in Tunisia.
Tunisia's economy is in poor shape and is facing a crisis after talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) broke down.
The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, has also cautioned that Tunisia needs to urgently reach a bailout agreement with the IMF.
.jpeg)
0 Comments