At least 10 dead after migrant boat capsizes in Mediterranean as search operation launched

At least 10 people have died and a search operation has been launched after a migrant boat capsized in the Mediterranean.

The boat was carrying about 60 people and had departed from Libya, capsizing about 45 nautical miles off the coast of Malta, the Italian coastguard said.

The coastguard added: "According to the latest information, a fishing boat in the area rescued around 48 people alive, out of about 60 reported to have set off.

"The Italian coastguard immediately dispatched a patrol boat to the area, which has so far recovered 10 bodies.

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"Search operations in the area are continuing, coordinated by the Maltese authorities."

Italian authorities said Malta had requested help in the ongoing search and rescue operation after the migrant boat capsized.

At least 827 people have died attempting to cross the Mediterranean so far this year, according to the UN's International Organisation for Migration (IOM).

Migrants crossedthe sea from North Africa to Italy and Malta, a route which killed more than 1,330 migrants last year, IOM said.

IOM has declared the North Africa to Italy route to be the most dangerous sea journey taken by refugees.

At least 34,907 migrants have died or went missing on the Mediterranean route, according to IOM.

The vast majority - 32,153 - died by drowning.

Afshan Khan, Unicef Regional Director and Special Coordinator for the Refugee and Response Crises in Europe, said the route was particularly dangerous for women and children in 2017.

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"The route is mostly controlled by smugglers, traffickers and other people seeking to prey upon desperate children and women who are simply seeking refuge or a better life," she said.

"We need safe and legal pathways and safeguards to protect migrating children that keep them safe and keep predators at bay."

In September 2014, a ship departing from Damietta, Egypt, sank off the coast of Malta, killing around 500 migrants.

In 2015, the EU struck an agreement with the Libyan Government to cut the number of migrants making the journey.

The European bloc has given the African country £605million, most of which has been spent on reinforcing border management.

Italy's migration policies in the Mediterranean rely on cooperation with Libya to curb departures, including support, training and equipment for the Libyan coastguard to intercept migrant boats.

In August last year, at least 27 people died after a boat capsized off the southern Italian island of Lampedusa.

Of the 27 deceased migrants, two were identified as a 21 and 20-year-old Egyptian man and three as Somali citizens, including a 17-year-old boy, a 30-year-old woman and a 25-year-old man.

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