RTX1PYZM
The bodies of dead migrants, which were recovered by the Libyan coastguard, are seen after their boat sank off the coastal town of Zuwara, west of Tripoli, August 27, 2015. The boat packed with mainly African migrants bound for Italy sank off the Libyan coast on Thursday and officials said up to 200 might have died. Reuters/Hani Amara

An asylum seekers’ boat, carrying as many as 500 migrants, has capsized off the Libyan city of Zuwara, reportedly killingly hundreds of them.

Officials and residents confirmed that there were two boats those sought help, the first one carried about 50 migrants and the second one had at least 400. By evening, the Libyan coast guard could save only about 201 lives. However, many are still trapped under water after the boat overturned and sank off the Libyan coast.

According to Reuters , the boat that headed towards Italy carried mostly African migrants and some from Syria, Pakistan, Morocco and Bangladesh. Out of 201 people who were rescued, officials said 147 were brought to the detention centre in Sabratha, west of Tripoli. However, identities of the migrants were withheld on request.

One of the residents of Zuwara told BBC that at least 100 bodies were rushed to the nearby hospital. With the rescue operations still being carried on, it has been reported that Libya's coast guard has very limited capabilities as they rely solely on tugboats, fishing vessels and small inflatables.

According to the United Nation, over 2,000 migrants have died in 2015 in the wake of reaching Europe crossing the Mediterranean Sea. More than 100,000 others have landed in Italy, whilst another 160,000 have crossed to Greece, BBC reported.

A similar incident occurred on Wednesday but with lesser number of deaths. Swedish coast discovered bodies of at least 51 people off the Libyan coast and rescued more than 400 survivors.

Reports said that at least 3,000 migrants were saved that day. Also, on last Saturday, about 4,400 migrants were rescued from boats off Libyan coast, which is considered to be biggest single-day operations to date.

It is believed that those on the boats were either trying to flee conflict in Libya or persecution. In the recent past, Libya is one of the countries and which is trying to deal with the growing influx of migrants.

Contact the writer at feedback@ibtimes.com.au, or let us know what you think below.

RELATED STORIES