60 people including 12 children have been killed after a wooden sailing boat carrying migrants to Europe crashed against rocks near the southern Italian coast according to authorities.
The crash occured in the early hours of 25 February near Steccato di Cutro.
The boat was sailing from Turkey and carried migrants from Afghanistan, Iran and several other countries.
Speaking to Reuters, a provincial official stated that 81 people had survived the shipwreck. Twenty of those who survived were hospitalized with one person being in intensive care.
According to Interior Minister, Matteo Piantedosi, there might still be around 20-30 people who are still missing. Reports from survivors indicate that the vessel was carrying between 150 to 200 migrants.
Italy's anti-immigrant far-right Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, blamed the deaths on human traffickers who profit whilst offering migrants "the false prospct of a safe journey".
Meloni continued "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".
Spanish migrant rescue charity Open Arms emphasized that "stopping, blocking and hindering the work of non-governmental organizations will have only one effect: the death of vulnerable people left without help".
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