Minister: 45 rescued after boat carrying migrants sinks off Lebanon

By Trend

A child died and 45 people were rescued Saturday after a boat carrying around 60 migrants sank off Lebanon, where deadly sea crossings have spiraled due to an economic crisis, Trend reports citing Al Arabiya.

“Forty-five people have been rescued and the corpse of one child,” has been retrieved from the boat that sank near the coast of the northern city of Tripoli, Public Works and Transport Minister Ali Hamie told a local broadcaster.

He said around 60 people were on the vessel carrying illegal migrants out of Lebanon.

“The search is ongoing,” Hamie said.

The Lebanese Red Cross said it had sent 10 ambulances to Tripoli.

An AFP correspondent said the army had closed off the port, allowing entry only to ambulances that were zipping in and out.

The families of some of the passengers gathered to check on their loved ones but they were denied access.