Over 59 migrants have died, and 80 others survived after their boat sank off the Italian coastal city of Crotone in the southern region of Calabria on Sunday.

Danilo Maida, the spokesperson for fighter fighters in the region, said that emergency workers and other fighter fighters are still looking for survivors using jet skis but that the harsh conditions in the sea are making rescue efforts hard.

PHOTO | COURTESY resue workers

According to witnesses, the migrant boat had about 150 people on the ship, and it was overloaded. Therefore it split apart, sinking on the southern coast of Italy. The migrants on board came from Iran, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. According to the Adnkronos news agency, it sank after collapsing against rocks in stormy seas. Video footage shows the wreckage of timber busted into pieces washing up on the beach.

Matteo Piantedosi, the minister for interior in Italy, said that It is an immense tragedy which shows the absolute need to act firmly against irregular migration channels adding that it was critical to put an end to sea crossings, which enriched traffickers while providing migrants with the illusory prospect of a better life in Europe.

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"The government is committed to preventing departures, and with them the unfolding of these tragedies, and will continue to do so, first of all by calling for maximum cooperation from the countries of departure and of origin," she said.

Many immigrants use Italy as their main entry point to Europe despite it being one of the most dangerous routes in central meditation; Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has expressed her deepest condolences to the lives lost, promising to block migrant sea departures to prevent such disasters.

Over 20000 migrants have lost their lives or gone missing at sea since 2014 while trying to cross over to Europe using this channel.



The incident reignited a debate about migration in Europe, particularly in Italy, where the recently elected right-wing government's strict new legislation for migrant rescue charities has come under criticism from the UN and others.