Dozens die in migrant ship fire off Libya

Roughly 60 migrants are presumed dead after their boat engine caught fire off the Libyan coast during an attempted Mediterranean crossing. Alarm Phone, a volunteer-run Mediterranean rescue hotline, said it had spoken to survivors of the March 18 accident in which the engine of a wooden boat carrying more than 100 people caught fire. “Several survivors reported to Alarm Phone that there had been more victims than survivors,” the group said in a statement. Also on Tuesday, European humanitarian group SOS Mediterranee said Italy would allow 116 migrants to leave its Ocean Viking ship after they were rescued last week. — AFP