More than 19 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa have died after their boat sank off the Tunisian coast while trying to cross the Mediterranean to Italy.

The recent migrant boat accident off the coast of Tunisia was revealed by human rights groups on Sunday, according to Al Jazeera.

After a large increase in the number of boats bound for Italy, in these four days he saw five migrant ships sink in the southern town of Sfax, leaving 67 missing and nine dead.

The Tunisian Coast Guard has rescued five people from a boat off Mahdia after a trip that began on a beach in Sfax, said Romadan Ben Omar, an official at the Forum for Social and Economic Rights (FTDES). told Al Jazeera.

The Coast Guard said it had stopped about 80 ships en route to Italy over the past four days and detained more than 3,000 of his migrants, mostly from sub-Saharan Africa. The coast of Sfax is an important starting point for those fleeing poverty and conflict in Africa and the Middle East who want a better life in Europe.

The latest disaster occurred during a campaign by Tunisian authorities to arrest illegal black Africans.

According to the United Nations, at least 12,000 migrants have sailed from Tunisia to arrive in Italy this year, compared with 1,300 in the same period in 2022. Previously, Libya was the main exit for migrants.

The Tunisian Coast Guard has blocked more than 14,000 of her migrants from sailing on boats in her first three months of the year, according to FTDES statistics. That compares with her 2,900 during the same period last year. The Italian Coast Guard said Thursday it had rescued about 750 migrants in two operations off southern Italy.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Friday that Europe risks seeing a massive wave of migration from North Africa to its coast unless financial stability is guaranteed in Tunisia. Meloni called on the IMF and some countries to quickly help Tunisia avoid collapse.