5 more bodies found in Morocco after migrant boat capsizes

RABAT, Morocco – Local authorities say they have recovered five more bodies after a rubber boat carrying Moroccan migrants capsized off the country’s Atlantic coast, raising the death toll to 12.

The bodies of six men and a woman had already been found Saturday off Ain Harouda, just northeast of Casablanca, after their boat sank. An investigation has been opened to determine the cause of the accident and search operations continue.

According to State-run agency MAP, some of the bodies were identified by relatives.

With the sea route from Libya to Italy increasingly being blocked by the Libyan coast guard as part of a deal with the European Union, Morocco has become a major departure point for African migrants trying to reach Europe.