At Least 53 Dead or Missing After Migrant Boat Capsizes Off Libya
A rubber boat carrying 55 migrants capsized north of Zuwara; only two Nigerian women survived, IOM says.
Overview
The International Organization for Migration said a rubber boat carrying 55 migrants capsized north of Zuwara on Feb. 6, leaving 53 people dead or missing and two Nigerian women rescued, according to a Monday IOM statement.
The boat departed Al-Zawiya around 11:00 p.m. on Feb. 5 and began taking on water about six hours later, highlighting the continued dangers of the central Mediterranean migration route, IOM officials said.
Human traffickers and smuggling networks continue to exploit migrants by using unseaworthy vessels, the IOM said, a claim contested by Libyan authorities who said they are conducting search-and-rescue operations.
The IOM's Missing Migrants Project reports at least 484 people have been reported dead or missing on the central Mediterranean route so far in 2026, with over 1,300 reported in 2025, underscoring the scale of the crisis.
The IOM called for stronger international cooperation and safer migration pathways, and Libyan authorities continue to detain some intercepted migrants in centers where U.N.-commissioned investigators have documented abuses.
Analysis
Center-leaning sources frame this coverage as a humanitarian-crisis story, using urgent, evaluative language (e.g., 'chaos-stricken Libya', 'rife with abuses') and prioritizing U.N. agencies and investigators' accounts. Editorial choices highlight victims and traffickers' criminality while omitting Libyan authorities’ perspectives or EU policy responses, reinforcing a victim-centered narrative.
Sources (5)
FAQ
A rubber boat carrying 55 migrants capsized north of Zuwara, Libya, on February 6, 2026, after departing from Al-Zawiya on February 5; only two Nigerian women survived, with 53 dead or missing, including two babies.
Two Nigerian women were rescued by Libyan authorities; one lost her husband, the other lost her two babies, and both received emergency medical care from IOM teams.
IOM attributes the incident to human traffickers using unseaworthy vessels on the central Mediterranean route, calling for international cooperation and safer pathways; 484 dead or missing reported in 2026 so far, over 1,300 in 2025.
It is one of the deadliest routes for migrants from North Africa to Europe, with frequent shipwrecks due to unsafe boats; at least 375 dead or missing in January 2026 alone, many unrecorded.
History
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