A record 1,313 migrants were reported to have died or went missing off the Tunisian coast last year, a rights group said on Tuesday, highlighting the worsening migrant crisis in the North Africa country.
Tunisian coast guards try to stop migrants at sea during their attempt to cross to Italy, off the coast off Sfax, Tunisia, Reuters/Jihed Abidellaoui
A record 1,313 migrants were reported to have died or went missing off the Tunisian coast last year, a rights group said on Tuesday, highlighting the worsening migrant crisis in the North Africa country.
The number represented about 75% of the number of dead or missing off the coasts of Italy, Libya and Malta, Ramadan Ben Amor, an official at the Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights told Reuters.
Tunisia has replaced Libya as north Africa's main departure point for people fleeing poverty and conflict elsewhere in Africa and across the Middle East in the hope of a better life in Europe.
And with improving weather since January, the influx of African migrants, including Tunisians, in boats heading for Italy has increased.
About 100 migrants have died or gone missing off the Tunisian coast since mid-January.
Reporting by Tarek Amara
Tunisia's prime minister urged European countries on Wednesday to increase financial assistance to his country and others to help tackle the flow of migrants from sub-Saharan Africa.
Egypt will halt load-shedding power cuts during the summer as of Sunday, after some natural gas shipments arrived, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said on Wednesday, in a bid to end a crisis that inconvenienced a population of 106 million.
More than 10 million Sudanese, or 20% of the population, have been driven from their homes since the war there began, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Tuesday, as the world's largest displacement crisis continues to worsen.
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