Italian authorities are investigating the cause of death for 26 girls, estimated to be between the ages of 14 and 18, whose bodies were recovered in the Mediterranean Sea on Sunday. The discovery has left officials with many questions… Were the girls purposely killed? Why were all the victims female?
Were they tortured or sexually assaulted?
According to CNN, investigators believe all 26 girls were from Nigeria and attempting migrate from Libya to Europe over the weekend — a notoriously dangerous route. The BBC reports that “twenty-three of the dead women had been on a rubber boat with 64 other people.” Their bodies were found floating in the water.
According to reports, autopsies are scheduled to be performed on Tuesday.
The Spanish navy ship “Cantabria” rescued around 400 migrants in the Mediterranean Sea, including 259 men and 116 women. Nine of the women were pregnant and 26, as we reported above, were dead.
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