UNHCR doubts 400 deaths in migrant boat disaster

(Baonghean.vn) -CcommitteeLienfitqsnailon refugees (UNHCR) said on April 19information aboutjob "hundreds"people killedon the roadMediterranean immigrationnot accurate.

The exact number of casualties after the boat sank in the Mediterranean on April 18 has not been determined. Photo: AP.

Earlier, on April 18, the media reported that 400 victims had their boat capsized near the Egyptian coast while on their journey to Europe. On the BBC channel, the number of casualties was up to 500 people.

Italian President Sergio Mattarella and Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni confirmed the incident, stressing that the tragedy in the Mediterranean was similar to the accident where hundreds of refugees sank off the coast of Libya a year ago, in April 2015.

However, both the Italian and Greek coast guard said on April 18 that they had no knowledge of the accident, and the UNHCR announced on its official Twitter page that the information about hundreds of migrants dying was incorrect.

Currently, the survivors of the accident have been taken to one of the Greek islands.

According to the International Organization for Migration, more than 177,000 refugees arrived in Europe by sea in 2016, of which 723 died or went missing during the journey.

Thanh Hien

(According to ABCNews)