Death toll from Lebanese migrant shipwreck rises to seven after woman’s body is found

The body of a woman has been found in the search for survivors after a migrant boat capsized in the Mediterranean while being pursued by naval forces.

The discovery by the Lebanese military brings the death toll to seven, Reuters reported yesterday.

Dozens are still missing after the dinghy sank near the northern Lebanese port city of Tripoli.

The authorities say more than 45 people have already been rescued.

It was not clear exactly how many would-be asylum seekers were crammed on to the boat when it set sail.

The UN refugee agency said the boat was carrying at least 84 people when it capsized about three nautical miles off the coast, AFP reported.

The agency’s figures suggest about 30 people could still be unaccounted for.

“The rescue operations went on all night and the Lebanese army was able to find the body of a woman,” said Ahmad Tamer, chief of the Tripoli port authority.

“The total number of victims is now seven.”

The Lebanese military said on Sunday that 48 people had been rescued.

The passengers were mostly Lebanese, with some Syrian and Palestinian refugees on board, the army said.

The circumstances that led the small, overloaded craft to sink are not clear, with some survivors accusing the navy of ramming its vessel into their boat.

Officials said a people smuggler attempted reckless escape manoeuvres.

Lebanon was once a transit point for asylum seekers from elsewhere in the region who were hoping to reach the shores of Cyprus.

The EU member is 175 kilometres from Lebanon.

Its economic crisis has led to the local currency losing more than 90 per cent of its value and pushed waves of Lebanese and Syrian refugees to attempt the dangerous sea journey to Europe in small dinghies.

At the weekend, relatives of the victims gathered in agitated crowds outside hospitals in Tripoli where the injured were being treated.

A few men waited outside the port in the city yesterday morning in the hope of discovering the fate of their missing loved ones.