200 Senegalese among dead

onnaedo

April 30, 2015 6:02 PM

A Senegalese official reports that survivors of the shipwreck and Senegalese associations working in Libya had confirmed the figures.

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No fewer than 200 Senegalese people were among those who died in the Mediterranean boat disaster off the coast of Libya which saw about 750 people drown.

BBC quoting a Senegalese official reports that survivors of the shipwreck and Senegalese associations working in Libya had confirmed the figures.

Also, the Senegalese foreign ministry official, Sorry Kaba, said that African countries needed to work together, not only on the issue of emergency measures to help migrants, but also to come up with longer term solutions.

According to the UN, 350 Eritreans died in the disaster. Other nationalities on board included migrants from Syria, Somalia, Sierra Leone, Mali, Gambia, Ivory Coast and Ethiopia.

Also, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) says that in the first quarter of 2015, the highest proportion of migrants arriving in Italy have been from the Gambia, Senegal, Somalia, Syria, Mali and Eritrea respectively.

Over 35,000 are thought to have crossed from Africa to Europe this year and some 1,750 have died while attempting the journey.

To this end, European leaders have pledged to triple funding for rescue operations aimed at migrant boats in the Mediterranean.

onnaedo