Sub-Saharan African migrants protest outside the headquarters of the International Organisation for Migration this week to demand their evacuation to their country of origin in Tunis, Tunisia. Photograph: Mohamed Messara/EPAAt least 19 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa died when their boat sank off the Tunisia as they tried to cross the Mediterranean to Italy, a human rights group said on Sunday, the latest migrant boat disaster off Tunisia.
In the last four days, five migrant boats have sunk off the southern city of Sfax, leaving 67 missing and nine dead, after a significant increase in boats heading towards Italy. Tunisia has taken over from Libya as a main departure point for people fleeing poverty and conflict in Africa, and the The Tunisian coast guard said it had stopped about 80 boats heading for Italy in the past four days and detained more than 3,000 migrants, mostly from sub-Saharan African countries.