Security sources say they think 12 Egyptian refugees are dead off the coast of Libya

Two Egyptian security sources say that a man was saved from the wrecked boat, but twelve Egyptian refugees are thought to be dead. The boat sank off the coast of the town of Tobruk in eastern Libya on Monday.

The sources said that the 13 men left for Italy on a boat run by people smugglers on Sunday night, based on information from one of the men who was still alive that came from Libyan officials.

The people in the group were from the regions of al-Sharkia and al-Gharbia in Egypt. They were among a growing number of Egyptians trying to make dangerous sea trips to Europe because of high unemployment and inflation.

After NATO-backed uprisings overthrew Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, Libya became a major route for people fleeing war and poverty to cross the Mediterranean Sea and get to Europe.

Oily 761,322 refugees from 44 countries live in Libya, according to data gathered by the UN in the middle of 2024.