Tragedy on Italian Coast - Dozens of African Immigrants Die Seeking Refuge

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Traumatized and hungry African immigrants have completed their nightmarish 20-day odyssey across the Mediterranean sea. But out of the 80-odd men, women and children who set out on the voyage for a better life in Europe, around 70 never made it. A scene from hell greeted rescuers with bodies stuffed in the engine room and under the deck. The Africans, all believed to be Somalians, boarded the boat in Libya and most of them died of hunger and cold. The vessel eventually reached the Italian island of Lampedusa. The disaster comes as interior ministers from the G5 group meet in France to discuss, among other things, illegal immigration. Italy has called on Europe and Africa to act urgently to stem the flow of such migrants. The Italian Interior Minister Giuseppe Pisanu has spoken of a "human tragedy" which "weighs on Europe's conscience." **PHOTO CAPTION*** Two immigrants sit huddled under blankets on the dock in Tarifa, Spain, Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2003. (AP Photo/R.Perales)

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