Over 40 migrants dead after boat sinks off Tunisia

The boat was attempting to cross the Med to reach Europe.

Forty-three migrants have drowned after the boat carrying them sank off the coast of Tunisia, according to humanitarian organisation The Tunisian Red Crescent. The migrants had set off from Zuwara, a port in Libya, and were crossing the Mediterranean in an attempt to reach Europe. The Tunisian navy managed to rescue a further 84 of the migrants on board, said the head of Tunisia's Red Crescent. According to the humanitarian organisation, which is one of the national affiliates of the Red Cross, the boat had set sail on Monday night and was carrying people from Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea and Bangladesh. It capsized after its engine broke down. The survivors were rescued off the Tunisian fishing port of Zarzis and were aged between three and 40, according to Tunisia's defence ministry. They were provided with food and drink by the Tunisian Red Crescent