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AT LEAST 61 people have died in a shipwreck off Italy’s southern coast on Sunday.
About 80 people were rescued but many more are thought to be missing as reports from survivors suggest there may have been up to 200 on board the vessel.
On Monday, two coastguard vessels searched the seas north to south off Steccato di Cutro looking for more survivors.
The tragic incident came just days after the far-right Italian government pushed a controversial law through parliament restricting the role of humanitarian organisations in rescuing migrants.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed her “deep sorrow” for the lives lost, but quickly went on to blame human traffickers for the incident.
In a statement she pledged to stop irregular sea migration to prevent more tragedies and demanded “maximum collaboration” from countries of “departure and of origin.”
Ms Meloni’s government accused migrant rescue charities of encouraging migrants to make the dangerous crossing to Italy and said they are working in partnership with human traffickers.
The allegations are strongly rejected by the charities.
Spanish migrant rescue charity Open Arms tweeted: “Stopping, blocking and hindering the work of non-governmental organisations will have only one effect: the death of vulnerable people left without help.”
