By Adel Thabeti

TUNIS, Tunisia (AA): Tunisia said Wednesday 10 migrants drowned and 76 others were rescued in two illegal attempts to cross the Mediterranean Sea into Europe.

In a statement, National Guard spokesman Hosam Eddin Al-Jababli said the bodies of 10 migrants were recovered after their boat capsized off Tunisia’s coast.

He added that most of the drowned migrants were from sub-Saharan Africa.

“Seventy-two migrants were rescued and 10 bodies recovered after Tuesday’s shipwreck” off the city of Sfax, coastguard spokesman Houssem Jebabli said on Wednesday.

The spokesman said 76 irregular migrants, including four Tunisians, were also rescued by Tunisian forces.

Legal measures were taken against the migrants, he said, without providing any further details.

Last Friday and Saturday 27 migrants died after their boats capsized off the Tunisian coast.

Last month, at least 52 people died and 70 went missing in boats capsizing.

For years, North African countries such as Tunisia, Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, and Morocco have witnessed attempts by migrants – mainly from sub-Saharan Africa – to reach Europe, hoping for a better life.

According to Tunisian authorities, over 20,000 irregular migrants had been arrested in 2021.

* Ikram Kouachi contributed to this report

Additional report by The Muslim News

[Map of Tunisia from CIA factbook/Public Domain]