Libya arrested three people suspected of involvement with two boats that capsized and killed up to 200 asylum seekers off the coast of Libya, reported Reuters.
The boats departed from the coastal city of Zuwara and were heading across the Mediterranean Sea when they sank. They held around 450 people from sub-Sarahan Africa, Syria, Pakistan and elsewhere. Young children were among the 200 who died.
Following Thursday's boat capsizing, Libyans rallied to call for stronger action against smugglers in Zuwara.
A security official anonymously reported the arrests. "We think that more are involved which we are still chasing," he told Reuters.
People-smuggling off the coast of Libya is common, yet arrests are rare, as a result of a void of power in a country in which rival governments battle for control.
Over 300,00 people have successfully crossed the Mediterranean sea so far this year, and over 2,500 have died trying, according to UNHCR spokeswoman Melissa Fleming. She noted that 219,000 people crossed the sea in all of 2014.
