35 Migrants Die as Boat Sinks Off Tunisian Coast

At least 35 migrants were killed when their boat sank off Tunisia’s southern coast and 67 others were rescued by the coast guard, Reuters quoted the Defence Ministry as saying on Sunday.

The rescue operation was ongoing, the ministry said in a statement. The migrants were of Tunisian and other nationalities.

Human traffickers increasingly use Tunisia as a launch pad for migrants heading to E u ro p e as Libya’s coast g u a rd , aided by armed groups, has tightened controls.

Security officials said the boat was packed with about 180 migrants, including 80 f rom other African countries.

Meanwhile, Italy’s new interior minister, Matteo Salvini, has said on a visit to Sicily that the island must stop being “the refugee camp of Europe”, BBC reported.

The leader of the farright League party said his government’s plans on migrants were not “hard line... but common sense”.

He said that increasing deportations and limiting new arrivals would end up saving lives.

However, critics have cast doubt on the feasibility of Mr Salvini’s plans.

Italy is the main destination for migrants crossing from North Africa to Europe, although numbers have fallen in recent months.