Libyan Red Crescent authorities recovered the bodies of 28 dead migrants that washed up on the sandy beaches of Libya’s west coast on Sunday after their migrant vessel sank off shore. Three people were known to have survived and made it to shore. The tragedy bookends one of the deadliest weeks in the Mediterranean in 2021 with a further 160 people known to have died trying to cross to Italy. “The bodies’ advanced state of decomposition indicates that the shipwreck happened several days ago,” a spokesperson for the Red Crescent said, adding that many more likely died. Authorities say at least 1,500 migrants died in 2021 trying to reach Europe. More than 30,000 were intercepted and returned to unthinkable conditions in Libya.
