A United Nations agency reported and local media on Wednesday that at least 20 people were killed after a boat carrying migrants capsized near the southern Italian island Lampedusa.

Ansa reported that rescuers had recovered 20 bodies and were still working. It was estimated that between 70 and 80 survivors were still alive.

Filippo Ungaro from the UNHCR refugee agency expressed "deep sorrow" about the tragedy and said that more migrants may still be missing.

He wrote that "twenty bodies were recovered and the same amount are missing" on his social media account on platform X.

The Italian interior ministry didn't immediately respond to our request for comment. (Reporting and editing by Gavin Jones, Alex Richardson, and Angelo Amante)

(source: Reuters)