At least 53 migrants, including two babies, are dead or missing after a small rubber boat overturned in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Libya, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has confirmed.

The boat was carrying 55 people when it capsized on 6 February, north of the Libyan town of Zuwara. Only two women from Nigeria survived the incident and were rescued by Libyan search and rescue teams.

One of the survivors said she lost her husband, while the other said she lost her two babies during the tragedy.

The IOM described the incident as another painful loss of life along the Central Mediterranean migration route, one of the most dangerous migration paths in the world.

IOM officials said their teams provided urgent medical care to the two survivors after they were brought ashore, working closely with local authorities.

According to the survivors, the boat left Al-Zawiya, Libya, at about 11 p.m. on 5 February. After about six hours at sea, water entered the boat, causing it to overturn.

Data from the IOM show that the situation remains very serious. In January alone, at least 375 migrants were reported dead or missing on the Central Mediterranean route. Many of these deaths happened during shipwrecks that were never officially recorded, often due to bad weather.

So far in 2025, more than 1,300 migrants have gone missing on this route, according to the IOM’s Missing Migrants Project. The latest incident has pushed the number of migrants reported dead or missing in 2026 to at least 484.

The IOM warned that human traffickers and smugglers continue to take advantage of migrants, placing them in unsafe boats and exposing them to serious danger, abuse, and exploitation.

The organisation is calling for stronger international action to stop smuggling networks and protect migrants. It also urged governments to create safe and legal migration options to reduce dangerous journeys and prevent more deaths.

The IOM stressed that without urgent global cooperation, more lives will continue to be lost at sea.