This is the first migrating shipwreck of the year 2021, the UNHCR said.
The boat allegedly left a few hours after departure due to the bad sea conditions and when the engine stopped.
The people who died were all men from West African countries, the UNHCR added.
“Survivors, mainly from Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Ghana and Gambia, reported that those who died were all men from West African countries,” the UNHCR said.
“Hundreds of people lost their lives last year by crossing the Central Mediterranean, where the largest number of deaths occurred during a single migration trip worldwide,” the statement said.
“IOM and UNHCR fear that the actual number of people killed in the central Mediterranean in 2020, due to the limited ability to monitor routes, could be much higher,” he said.