Dozens of migrants rescued from boat off Lebanon

A UN peacekeeping force has rescued 36 people, mostly Syrians, and recovered the body of a passenger from a boat off Lebanon on Monday, the force and the UN refugee agency says.

The destination of the boat is not immediately clear, but Lebanon and neighboring Cyprus have reported several migrant vessels trying to leave the Middle Eastern country in past weeks.

A UNIFIL “ship located at sea outside Lebanese territorial waters, a boat with 37 people inside. Unfortunately, one of them had already passed away,” it says in a statement, without providing details on the cause.

It says the survivors are given medical treatment on board the UNIFIL ship.

A spokeswoman for the UN refugee agency said 25 of them are Syrians, eight Lebanese, and the remaining three are of other nationalities.

— AFP