Tunisia recovers bodies of 13 irregular migrants off eastern coast

TUNIS, Tunisia

Tunisian authorities announced Wednesday that the bodies of 13 irregular migrants of African descent had been recovered off the coast of the city of Mahdia in the eastern part of the country.

Farid ben Haja, the official spokesman for the Mahdia and Monastir courts, told Anadolu that the bodies were discovered on Tuesday, washed ashore in the village of Salakta and city of Chebba.

He added that all of the bodies were male, and preliminary examinations indicated they belonged to irregular migrants from sub-Saharan Africa.

Ben Haja further noted that judicial authorities have launched an investigation to determine the circumstances of the incident.

On Sept. 12, Tunisian authorities reported recovering the bodies of six female irregular African migrants off the coast of Monastir, including that of an infant.

According to a report published by the Tunisian National Guard in June, the authorities recovered the bodies of 462 irregular migrants from the beginning of 2024 until May, compared to 714 during the same period of 2023.

The report also indicated that 30,281 irregular migrants were rescued compared with 21,652 during the same timeframe last year.

Nearly weekly, Tunisian authorities announce the thwarting of attempts at irregular migration to European shores, intercepting hundreds of migrants from Tunisia and other African countries, driven by the repercussions of economic and political crises in their home countries.

Tunisia is facing increasing European pressure to enhance surveillance of its shores and prevent migrant boats from departing.

In September 2023, the European Commission announced the allocation of €127 million ($141.3 million) in aid to Tunisia as part of a memorandum of understanding addressing issues including the reduction of irregular migration flows.

*Writing by Alperen Aktas from Istanbul