(Author: Libyan Gazette Editorial Staff)
Two Syrian girls died in the Mediterranean after their boat which was carrying 27 Syrian refugees on route to Europe capsized off the shores of Libya.
The girls, who were eight months and five years old, were among six of the 27 passengers on the boat who drowned, said the humanitarian organization Migration Offshore Aid Station (MOAS) on Friday.
Three other bodies were recovered, two women and one man, but the fourth body was never found. MOAS has two rescue vessels that travel between Libya and Italy on the Mediterranean Sea looking out for vessels carrying refugees. The bodies were found 22 nautical miles from Libya’s shoreline on Thursday.
The Syrian plight caught media headlines this week after a bomb attack on Aleppo destroyed the home of five-year-old Omran Daqneesh. The viral video of the little boy’s disoriented state after he was dug out beneath rubble caught the attention of many who were disturbed by the attack.