Tripoli, Jul 27 (UNI) At least 57 people drowned after their boat capsized off the Libyan coast near Khums, International Organization for Migration (IOM) spokesperson Safa Msehli said in a statement.

“A shipwreck off Libya claims at least 57 lives today after a boat capsized near Khums,” Msehli said via Twitter late last night. According to survivors brought to shore by fishermen and the coast guard, at least 20 women and two children were among those who drowned.”

Eighteen of the migrants were rescued and returned to shore by fishermen and Libya’s coastguard, Msehli said.

The survivors, who are from Nigeria, Ghana and Gambia, reported the vessel had stopped due to an engine problem, then capsized amid bad weather, Msehli said.

Monday’s capsizing was the second sea disaster in less than a week off the Libyan coast involving Europe-bound migrants. At least 20 migrants went overboard from a vessel on Wednesday and were presumed dead, according to the UN migration agency.

There has been a spike in crossings and attempted crossings from Libya in recent months. According to Amnesty International, in the first six months of this year, more than 7,000 people intercepted at sea were forcibly returned to detention camps in Libya.

A migration agency report earlier this month said the number of migrants and refugees who died while attempting to reach Europe on dangerous sea crossings more than doubled so far this year, compared to the first six months of 2020.