Rome: More than 20 migrants are missing in the central Mediterranean, according to Italian media.
Witnesses said they went overboard after a shipwreck on the way from Libya to Italy, Italian media reported.
Seven people were rescued by the Italian coastguard, about 20 kilometres south-west of the island of Lampedusa.
According to the reports, the men, women and children - all of them Syrians - had boarded the vessel in Libya on Sunday.
Their overcrowded boat capsized a few hours later.
The survivors reported that there had been 28 people on board, each paying between ?500-1,000 for the crossing. No one had a life jacket.
The seven men were discovered clinging to the capsized boat three days later. (DPA)