ADVERTISEMENTAuthorities have recovered the bodies of 74 migrants, which were washed up on beach near the western Libyan city of Zawiya.
Mohamed al-Misrati, a spokesman from the humanitarian charity Red Crescent, said the cadavers had been recovered on Monday and appeared to have died over the past two days.
Misrati said all but three of the dead were men. He added that they were all adults and mostly from sub-Saharan African countries.
#Libya: Tragedy again today as #RedCrescent recover bodies of 74 people from a boat washed ashore near #Zawiya#StopIndifference#migrationpic.twitter.com/YarPI5mYEG
— IFRC MENA (@IFRC_MENA) 20 février 2017
Libya is the main departure point for migrants hoping to reach Europe by sea, and the bodies of those who drown attempting the risky crossing are frequently found washed up on Libyan shores.
Some bodies were still inside the boat. A local volunteer said the toll could rise, as some bodies had been spotted in the sea but aid workers had not yet been able to recover them.
Last year a record 181,000 migrants crossed between Libya and Italy. More than 4,500 are known to have died.