According to the national guard of Tunisia, around 23 migrants are missing after boarding a boat bound for Italy.
The national guard stated on Saturday that it had dispatched floating units and notified the navy to assist in the search for the missing people.
Tunisia has been dealing with a significant migration crisis as a result of an inflow of people from other African and Middle Eastern nations wanting to travel to Europe by boat.
It has overtaken Libya as the primary departure point for those seeking to reach the West.
Tunisia has been cracking down on migrants as part of a deal worth more than €1bn (£855,870) with the EU as the 27-member bloc tries to tackle the ongoing issue of migration.
The EU’s deal with Tunisia includes assistance to better police the border and prevent migrants without papers from reaching Europe.
The number of migrants reaching Italy in 2024 fell by two-thirds, compared to the same point last year, according to figures from Italy’s Interior Ministry on 8 May.
Tensions in Tunisia have been growing due to migrant arrivals. Several activists in the country were seized earlier this month, accused of financial offenses related to offering aid to migrants.
Over 80 migrants were arrested in Tunis after skirmishes with police officials during the evacuation of encampments that were “disturbing the peace,” according to Radio Mosaïque.
Hundreds of migrants had camped near the headquarters of the UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration, with many demanding that the agencies relocate them outside of Tunisia.
The New Pact on Migration and Asylum lays out rules for EU members to handle people trying to enter without authorisation, from how to screen them to establish whether they qualify for protection to deporting them if they are not allowed to stay.
However, the vast reform package will only enter force in 2026, bringing no immediate fix to an issue that has fuelled one of the EU’s biggest political crises, dividing nations over who should take responsibility for migrants when they arrive and whether other countries should be obligated to help.
