Dozens of Lebanese and Syrian refugees grounded for days at sea

Dozens of Lebanese and Syrian migrants stranded for days on a sinking fishing boat in the Mediterranean Sea are urging European coast guards to save them, saying that two children have died.

The roughly 60 migrants and refugees told relatives and volunteer groups with a satellite phone that two young children have died, and that the group has been without food, water, and baby formula for the past three days, The Associated Press (AP) news agency reported on Monday.

On board are Syrian refugees and Lebanese from its severely impoverished northern provinces trying to reach Italy for job opportunities. They left Lebanon off the coast of the northern city of Tripoli about 10 days ago.

“They’re trying to remove water leaking into the boat with buckets, that’s all they have,” the brother of one of the Syrian passengers told AP. He asked to not disclose their names for security reasons and because some of the migrants did not want to disclose the news to their families back home. “This is fishing boat is meant for five people, not 60.”

Lebanon has a population of six million, including one million Syrian refugees, and has been in the grip of a severe economic meltdown since late 2019 that has pulled over three-quarters of the population into poverty.

The migrants are reportedly stranded near the coasts of Malta and Italy. The authorities have not dispatched rescuers, according to families and activists in touch with the migrants.

Lebanese parliamentarian Ashraf Rifi urged the Italian government, as well as the Lebanese Foreign Ministry and the Lebanese Embassy in Rome to take action.

According to families and Alarm Phone, an activist network that helps bring in rescuers to distressed migrants at sea, Malta has not yet authorized a rescue operation and has not given permission to a commercial cargo ship to rescue the stranded migrants.

“A relative informed us that water is entering the boat and it is at severe risk of capsizing!” Alarm Phone said on Twitter on Monday.

“They have been at sea for over 10 days already and several EU authorities have been informed – why is nobody intervening?”

Meanwhile, families fear the leaking boat could sink at any time.

(Agencies)