At Least 7 Dead as Libya Tanker Rescues over 100 Migrants

At least seven bodies were recovered, including a child, and four pregnant women were listed as missing, as an oil tanker rescued 102 migrants from the Mediterranean off Tripoli on Friday.

"We were some 22 nautical miles northeast of Tripoli when at around 9 am (0700 GMT) we spotted ... a group of people in the water," said Mohammed al-Kone, an officer on board a Libyan oil tanker.

"They were near a rubber boat which had deflated  but was carrying seven bodies, including that of a small child," he told AFP, adding that the survivors had reported four pregnant women missing.

The tanker alerted the coast guard and took the survivors to Tripoli port, towing the inflatable. At the port, a grief-stricken survivor recognized his child among the victims.

For years, the North African country has been a stepping stone for migrants seeking a better life in Europe.

People smugglers have taken advantage of chaos in Libya since its 2011 revolution to step up their lucrative business.

Earlier this month, Libya's coastguard said it rescued more than 100 migrants off Qarabulli, 60 kilometers (36 miles) east of Tripoli, after the engine on their rubber dinghy broke down.