At least 22 people die after six days adrift in boat en route to Europe from Libya

Two Sudanese men, believed by Greek authorities to have been behind a smuggling operation in which 22 people were “systematically” thrown overboard after succumbing to days without food or water at sea, have been ordered to appear before a local court on Crete.Accused of illegally trafficking scores of would-be migrants into the south-eastern European country from Libya, the duo were given 48 hours to prepare to testify before an investigating magistrate on Monday.“They will appear before a prosecutor on charges of involuntary manslaughter after attempting to facilitate the illegal entry into Greece of scores of people,” an official said. “A grave tragedy has occurred.”Greece’s state-run broadcaster ERT reported the two alleged smugglers, aged 19 and 21, appeared on Saturday before a magistrate in the Cretan capital Heraklion.Greek police said 26 people, including a woman and a child who survived the harrowing 200-nautical-mile journey from Tobruk in eastern Libya, described 22 of their fellow passengers being thrown into the Mediterranean Sea.A source said: “The smugglers appear to have lost their way with the result that the boat was adrift for six days in very bad weather conditions. And during that time they ran out of water and food. From the testimony of survivors, those who died were systematically thrown overboard.”Two survivors were taken to hospital in Heraklion, the coastguard said.Based on survivor statements, the coastguard said the boat had left Tobruk, a port city in eastern Libya, on 21 March. The boat was bound for Greece, the gateway for many people hoping for asylum in the EU.The coastguard said: “During the journey, the passengers lost their bearings and remained at sea for six days without food or water.”The bodies of those who died “were thrown into the sea on the orders of one of the smugglers”, it said.The Greek authorities arrested two Sudanese" class="entity-link entity-person" data-entity-id="74220" data-entity-type="person">South Sudanese men believed to be the smugglers.They are under investigation for “illegal entry into the country” and “negligent homicide”.The vessel carrying the group was 53 nautical miles south of Ierapetra, a town on southern Crete.A coastguard spokesperson told AFP that the craft had endured “unfavourable meteorological conditions” during their journey.That, coupled with a shortage of food and water, had “led to the deaths through exhaustion of 22 people,” they said.The number of people who have died trying to reach European soil by crossing the Mediterranean from north Africa more than doubled in the first two months of 2026 compared with last year, the EU border agency Frontex said earlier this month.According to data from the International Organization for Migration, 559 people died during January and February, compared with 287 for the same period last year.In December, 17 people were found dead inside their boat, which was taking on water and had partly deflated, to the south-west of Crete.Greek authorities found only two survivors, stating that a further 15 people had drowned. Their bodies were never recovered.In an attempt to stem the crossings, European parliament on Thursday endorsed a major tightening of EU migration policy and approved the concept of “return hubs”, designed to send those trying to reach Europe to non EU third countries.Rights groups have criticised the proposals as inhumane.