Tunisia’s Ben Guerdane reels from violent protests after boat carrying 15 folks sinks, killing no less than 12.
Printed On 25 Aug 2026
Volunteers in Tunisia have continued the seek for two folks nonetheless lacking after a ship carrying 15 migrants sank off the nation’s southeastern coast, as town of Ben Guerdane reeled from violent protests sparked by the tragedy.
Footage, verified by Al Jazeera, confirmed volunteers within the metropolis of Zarzis heading out to sea on fishing boats on Monday to seek for the lacking.
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The migrant boat, believed to be headed in direction of Italy, sank late on Friday after setting off from a location between Zarzis and Ben Guerdane with 15 largely younger folks on board. It sank about 14 nautical miles (26km) off the coast of Zarzis.
Just one particular person survived, having drifted at sea for about 48 hours earlier than being rescued by a industrial vessel, based on Tunisian media.
The our bodies of 12 folks have been recovered by Sunday, the Tunisian Nationwide Guard mentioned.
The deaths have sparked a wave of grief and anger, triggering violent protests in Ben Guerdane on Sunday evening. In response to the Tunisian Nationwide Guard, some 14 folks on the boat have been from Ben Guerdane, and one was from Zarzis.
The protesters burned tyres and blocked roads, whereas police responded by firing tear fuel to disperse the crowds. The protesters demanded higher residing circumstances and financial improvement, saying an absence of alternatives and years of marginalisation are pushing younger folks to undertake harmful sea crossings to Europe searching for a greater life.
Mostafa Abdelkebir, the top of the Tunisian Observatory for Human Rights, mentioned these on board included seven members of the identical household. He advised the Reuters information company on Monday {that a} hospital in Ben Guerdane has obtained no less than 19 our bodies of migrants recovered from the ocean over the previous two days.
It was not clear if all of the our bodies have been from the boat that sank. Abdelkebir advised Reuters that genetic testing was being carried out to determine the our bodies and decide what number of had been on board the boat.
Some in Tunisia have referred to as for a nationwide day of mourning over the deaths.
Imad Oulad Jibril, a lawmaker, on Sunday referred to as it “the tragedy of a nation that sees its youth fleeing the hardships of the land solely to be swallowed by the ocean”.
The opposition Democratic Bloc occasion tied the sinking to Tunisia’s financial strains, saying: “When crossing the ocean turns into simpler than residing in Tunisia, we should ask: Who’s at fault?”
Tunisia has seen comparable tragedies lately, together with the Kerkennah catastrophe, wherein greater than 100 folks died or went lacking in 2018 after the sinking of a migrant boat. The incident led to the dismissal of the then-interior minister. In Zarzis in 2022, no less than 18 folks died after one other migrant boat sank, sparking weeks of protests.
Tunisia’s southeastern coast lies simply 145 km (90 miles) from the Italian island of Lampedusa.
The central Mediterranean is taken into account the deadliest migration route on this planet, based on the Worldwide Group for Migration, which says no less than 821 migrants have died or gone lacking on the route this yr – greater than double the toll over the identical interval final yr.
Throughout the Mediterranean as an entire, no less than 1,065 folks have died or gone lacking, based on the group.
