At least 13 Tunisians are missing after a boat carrying migrants sank off the Tunisian coast while attempting to reach Italy, according to the Tunisian Observatory for Human Rights.
The boat, which set off early on Thursday, 20 August, was carrying mostly young people, including seven members of the same family, as well as a man and his pregnant wife, the rights group's head, Mostafa Abdelkebir, told Reuters.
Two people were rescued. One survivor told rescuers they had been stranded at sea for hours after the vessel capsized, while the second was in critical condition, according to Abdelkebir.
Tunisian National Guard spokesperson Houssem Eddine Jebabli said coastguard units, backed by an aircraft and naval units, were searching for those still missing.
According to Abdelkebir, four bodies had also been recovered, but it could not be confirmed whether they were from the same boat.
The central Mediterranean route from North Africa is one of the world's deadliest migration routes. Migrants from Africa and the Middle East continue to attempt the journey to Europe, often in overcrowded or unseaworthy boats.
Tunisia was once a major departure point for migrants crossing the Mediterranean, but departures have fallen sharply over the past two years amid tighter maritime controls backed by European funding and border-monitoring equipment, particularly from Italy.
Tunisia's migration policies have drawn criticism from human rights organisations.
Last month, 46 rights groups, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, criticised the EU's 2023 migration agreement with Tunisia, saying it had helped "fuel and normalise serious human rights violations".
The groups accused Tunisian security forces of carrying out "reckless and violent interceptions at sea" and collective expulsions, and called on the EU to suspend funding for migration and border-control activities involving Tunisian security forces.
Tunisia has not commented on the statement but has repeatedly said it is bearing the brunt of a major migration influx.
The International Organization for Migration estimates that more than 35,000 people have gone missing in the Mediterranean since 2014.
The Tunisian Observatory for Human Rights has previously estimated that about 10,000 Tunisians have disappeared at sea while attempting to reach Europe since 2011.
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