A migrant boat capsized in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Lampedusa on Wednesday, killing at least 20 people and leaving many more missing, according to the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), reported by AFP.
“Deep anguish for yet another shipwreck off Lampedusa,” UNHCR spokesman Filippo Ungaro wrote on social media, adding that 20 bodies have been recovered and as many are feared missing.
Italian Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi confirmed the tragedy, saying it occurred about 14 nautical miles from the island. The vessel, reportedly carrying 97 people, overturned before it was spotted from the air by Italy’s financial police.
Radio Radicale reported that 60 people were rescued, while RaiRadio1 said between 12 and 17 remain unaccounted for. Save the Children Italy said a one-and-a-half-year-old girl was among those lost.
Lampedusa, Italy’s southernmost island, is a primary landing point for migrants crossing from North Africa via the central Mediterranean — one of the deadliest migration routes in the world. The UNHCR says 675 migrants have died along this route so far in 2025.
Italy’s Interior Ministry reports that 38,263 migrants have reached its shores this year. Many make the crossing in unseaworthy, overcrowded vessels, often run by human smuggling networks.
Piantedosi said the disaster underscores “the urgency of preventing dangerous sea journeys from the countries of departure and relentlessly combating the ruthless trafficking business that fuels this phenomenon.”
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government has pursued agreements with North African states to stem departures, offering financial support and training to local authorities in exchange for enforcement measures.
