Italy recovers 10 bodies as boat with nearly 60 on board capsizes off Malta

The Italian coastguard has recovered 10 bodies after a boat carrying nearly 60 refugees and migrants capsized near the island of Malta.

A fishing boat rescued 48 people from the Mediterranean Sea after their craft overturned on Sunday, the coastguard said, adding that it capsized about 45 nautical miles (83km) east-southeast of Malta after leaving Libya.

“The Italian coastguard ⁠immediately dispatched a ⁠patrol boat to the area, which has so far recovered 10 ‌bodies. Search operations in the area are continuing, coordinated ‌by ‌the Maltese authorities,” its statement added.

It is the latest in a series of boat wrecks in the Mediterranean this year, as refugees and migrants continue to risk their lives in a desperate attempt to reach Europe.

The beginning of this year was among the deadliest in the Mediterranean since 2014, according to the United Nations’ International Organization for Migration (IOM).

The IOM reports that at least 990 people have died attempting to cross the Mediterranean this year. Last year, at least 2,180 people died or went missing.

The latest deaths come after European Union politicians and member states agreed in principle on a new set of rules that would allow governments to deport asylum seekers whose claims have been rejected to third countries.

The deal, which was discussed on Monday, was first proposed by the European Commission last November.