Bessem Ben Dhaou –
SFAX (Tunisia). The Public Prosecutor at the Sfax Court of First Instance and his official spokesman, Fawzi al-Masmoudi, confirmed the discovery of the body of an irregular migrant and the rescue of 11 after their boats sank off the coast of governorate of Sfax. A dozen are missing.
Al-Masmoudi added that “The boat left from the coast of the city of Zarzis and was wrecked off the coast of Sfax before sinking on Saturday night”, and that an investigation has been opened into the case”. “The boat – he specified – was carrying 22 immigrants, most of whom were Tunisian males, according to preliminary data”, and that “National Guard and Navy units, with the participation of Civil Protection divers are continuing to search for missing persons who were on board the boat”.
Tunisia has recently witnessed a notable increase in the rate of migration to Europe, especially to the Italian coast, due to the repercussions of the economic and political crisis in the country.
Attempts at irregular immigration are thwarted almost daily, and hundreds of Tunisian and sub-Saharan African nationals are arrested by the security forces and army in Tunisia.
