NewslookA handout frame video provided on Oct. 5, 2016 and released by the Italian Coast Guard shows migrants boarding a ship during a rescue operation conducted off the Italian coast near Lampedusa. (Photo: ITALIAN COAST GUARD / HANDOUT, EPA)Hundreds of migrants are believed to have drowned after two boats sank of the coast of Libya, a United Nations official said Thursday. Carlotta Sami, a spokeswoman for the U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR), said at least 239 people were dead, Reuters reported. The International Organization for Migration said 4,220 people have died so far this year trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea to reach Europe. Last month, UNHCR said more than 3,800 people were dead or missing in the Mediterranean in 2016, making it the highest figure ever.

Source: Libya Today November 03, 2016 12:53 UTC