Two people have died and around 70 are feared missing after a boat capsized in the southern Mediterranean off the coasts of Libya on Saturday, a non-governmental organisation reports. The organisation Sea-Watch said its aircraft Seabird 2 had spotted yesterday an overturned boat in the waters and around 15 people desperately clinging to the hull.

On Easter Sunday, the NGO claimed a total of 105 people were on board, of whom only 32 managed to survive after being rescued by freighters in the area. The survivors were taken to Molo Favarolo in Lampedusa, Italy, alongside the bodies of the two people who died, Italian newspaper La Stampa reported.

The small wooden boat carrying the migrants, believed to measure between 12 and 15 metres, had set sail from Tripoli, Libya, before it capsized.

Italian news agency Ansa, which instead reported the number of people missing as 80, quoted a message from Save the Children about the incident, which read: “On Easter Sunday, which for many represents a time of rebirth and hope, we find ourselves mourning yet more lives lost off the coast of Libya.”

They also said: “According to reports, the number of missing people is not yet known, nor whether any of them are minors. The Save the Children team on Lampedusa is operational to ensure an immediate response to the needs of the survivors, including one minor.”

The organisation added that, over the past 12 years, nearly 34,500 people have died or gone missing in the Mediterranean while trying to reach southern Europe.

This year alone, the number of victims has already reached more than 800, including many children, they added.