Syrian authorities have said around 20 survivors have been found
61 dead in Lebanon migrant boat tragedy
Lebanese transport minister says Syrian authorities have recovered the bodies of at least 61 people who were aboard a migrant boat that sank off the Syrian coast after sailing from Lebanon earlier this week.
Friday 23/09/2022
Syrian authorities have said around 20 survivors have been found
DUBAI - Syrian authorities have recovered the bodies of at least 61 people who were aboard a migrant boat that sank off the Syrian coast after sailing from Lebanon earlier this week, Lebanese transport minister Ali Hamiye said on Friday.
Syrian authorities began finding bodies in the sea off the coast of Tartus on Thursday afternoon. Authorities have not yet said what happened to the boat.
Lebanon has seen a spike in migration driven by a devastating financial meltdown that has plunged swathes of the population into poverty over the last three years.
Syrian authorities have said around 20 survivors have been found.
The Syrian transport ministry has cited survivors saying the boat left from Lebanon's northern Minyeh region on Tuesday with between 120 and 150 people onboard, bound for Europe.
Samer Qubrusli, the Syrian director-general of ports, said on Friday that rescue efforts were continuing.