Two boats bound for Italy carrying mainly African illegal migrants sank off the Libyan city of Zuwara and hundreds of people are feared dead, local residents and officials said.

According to media reports, the first boat, which signaled for help early on Thursday, had nearly 50 people on board. The second overcrowded boat, which sank much later, had about 400 passengers.

The victims include migrants from Syria, Bangladesh and several sub-Saharan African countries, but the information could not be independently verified.

Zuwara, Libya's most western town located near the Tunisian border, is a major launchpad for smugglers shipping migrants to Italy. Libya has turned into a transit route for migrants fleeing conflict and poverty to make it to Europe.

According to the United Nations, about 2,400 migrants have died trying to cross the Mediterranean to Europe so far this year.

The new heartbreaking tragedy of the migrant crisis has drawn attention globally. "They set out full of hope, clutching a few cherished belongings, or the hand of a loved one as they stepped onto the overcrowded, barely seaworthy boats they thought would take them to new lives in Europe."

"But within hours, their journeys across the Mediterranean ended in tragedy. Now days, weeks, or even months later, their bodies are washing up on the beaches of Libya," media reports said.

Source: XINHUA