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Italy: Dozen feared drowned after refugees’ boat hits trouble

Charity Save the Children reported a further migrant tragedy in the seas off Italy yesterday.

Save the Children’s spokeswoman said in Catania, Sicily, that survivors had spoken of “dozens” of their fellow refugees falling overboard from their rubber boat on Sunday before rescue vessels could reach them.

The unfortunates were presumed drowned.

The incident occurred in the Mediterranean between Libya and Sicily.

The overloaded boat ran into trouble and a commercial vessel came to the aid of the occupants.

The ship arrived yesterday in Catania, where the survivors disembarked and told of their ordeal.

Last weekend saw a surge in people-trafficking across the Mediterranean, as smugglers took advantage of calm seas.

The Italian coastguard rescued nearly 7,000 refugees between Friday and Sunday.

Last month, some 1,200 people were drowned when overloaded craft capsized in two separate incidents.

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