Passengers sleeping on a migrant boat stuck between Greece and Malta. Picture sent by Michel Hallak
BEIRUT — At least 60 passengers of an irregular boat that departed from North Lebanon on Saturday are now out of supplies since being stranded at sea near the Greek and Maltese coasts, a family member of several of the passengers told L’Orient Today.
The boat reportedly took off from the northern Lebanese coast over the weekend, after passengers boarded the vessel via smaller watercraft to avoid grabbing attention, the family member said. It then broke down off the coasts of Greece and Malta and water and food supplies have since then reportedly run out.
Many other boats passing close to the broken-down vessel have so far refused to assist the passengers, according to Abou Ayman al-Moshmshani, a Lebanese man who said his children and grandchildren are aboard.
Moshmshani told L'Orient Today that his relatives chose to make the journey “in spite of the risks … to seek a decent life for themselves and their families.” He also called on authorities to rescue the boat.
According to Associated Press, the boat passengers told relatives and volunteer groups via a satellite phone that two young children aboard have died. Al-Moshmshani could not confirm the reported deaths.
A migrant boat sank off the coast of Tripoli, North Lebanon, in April with dozens of people on board, after a Lebanese Army boat intercepted the vessel. Around 40 people were killed, with dozens of them still missing beneath the sea.
The Indian-owned submarine “Blue Whale,” which arrived in Lebanon in late August to conduct an operation in search of April's sunken vessel, left Lebanon last week without releasing any report on the mission’s findings, lawyer Mohammed Sablouh, who is representing some of the families of the victims, told L’Orient Today.
Reporting contributed by Michel Hallak