MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Swedish naval units found 50 dead migrants off the coast of Libya in the hold of a boat directed toward Italy, local media reported Wednesday
The Il Fatto Quotidiano newspaper said over 400 migrants were also in the hold of the smugglers boat. Those remaining alive were rescued by two Swedish ships; the Poseidon and the Fiorillo, a Coast Guard ship.
"The ones stuck in the hold could not get on the outside deck… They forced the [saving] crew to resort to violence, with kicks, punches and blows," the newspaper quoted one of the rescued migrants as saying.
Over 255,000 refugees have arrived in Europe by sea in 2015 alone, according to the most recent data from the International Organization for Migration (IOM). Italy has taken in about 103,000 migrants.
More than 2,300 refugees from North Africa and the Middle East have died this year in attempts to cross the Mediterranean Sea to reach Europe, according to the IOM.
