Boat carrying 400 people adrift between Malta and Greece

Athens [Greece], April 10 : Amid a sharp rise of migrant boats crossing the Mediterranean from North Africa, a boat carrying 400 passengers is adrift between Malta and Greece, reported Sky News.

Support service Alarm Phone tweeted its concerns, saying it had received a call from the boat, which departed from Tobruk in Libya. While German NGO Sea-Water International said those on board were in "imminent danger of death" and called on the EU to act.

The vessel is said to be out of fuel and its lower deck is full of water. The captain has left and there is "nobody who can steer the boat", said Alarm Phone, adding that it had alerted the authorities, reported Sky News.

The boat is now in the Maltese Search and Rescue area, Alarm Phone added.

People on board are pcking and several need medical attention, Alarm Phone said, including a child, a pregnant woman and someone with a physical disability, reported Sky News.

There has been a rise in the number of migrant boats crossing the Mediterranean from North Africa recently.

Germany's Resqship, another NGO said on Sunday at least 23 migrants died overnight in the Mediterranean in a separate shipwreck.

It said on Twitter the NGO found 25 people in the water during a rescue operation, and its staff were able to recover 22 survivors and two bodies, although it was told about 20 other people had already drowned.

Last week, 440 migrants were rescued off Malta after a complex 11-hour operation in stormy seas by the Geo Barents vessel of the Doctors Without Borders (MSF) charity, reported Sky News.

Meanwhile, at least 23 African migrants were missing and four died on Saturday after their two boats sank off Tunisia as they tried to reach Italy.