A migrant boat sinks in the Channel of Sicily with at least 34 people dead.
On 3 October 2013, a boat carrying migrants from Libya to Italy sank off the Italian island of Lampedusa. It was reported that the boat had sailed from Misrata, Libya, but that many of the migrants were originally from Eritrea, Somalia and Ghana. An emergency response involving the Italian Coast Guard resulted in the rescue of 155 survivors. On 12 October it was reported that the confirmed death toll after searching the boat was 359, but that further bodies were still missing; a figure of "more than 360" deaths was later reported.A second shipwreck occurred 120 kilometres (75 mi) from Lampedusa on 11 October, within the Maltese search and rescue zone, but closer to Lampedusa. The boat was reportedly carrying migrants from Syria, and at least 34 individuals were later confirmed dead.