At least 8 women and 3 children die as migrant boat sinks off Tunisia

Boat with about 30 people on board sank on route to Italian island of Lampedusa

Boats seized from migrants  gathered inside the port at Lampedusa, Italy in August. File photograph: Lorenzo Palizzolo/Getty Images
Boats seized from migrants gathered inside the port at Lampedusa, Italy in August. File photograph: Lorenzo Palizzolo/Getty Images

At least 11 people from Africa died when their boat sank off Tunisia on Sunday, as they tried to cross the Mediterranean to the Italian island of Lampedusa, a Tunisian security official said.

Tunisia's coast guard recovered the bodies of eight women and three children off the coast near Sfax late on Sunday, he said.

About 30 people had set out on the boat, aiming to reach Italy, officials said.

The coast guard is searching for the other missing people.

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Last year, about 90 African migrants drowned after their boat capsized on route to Europe from Libya, one of the worst such accidents in Tunisian waters. – Reuters