A Europe-bound ship carrying 257 illegal migrants has sunk off the Libya coast and dozens of people were feared to have drowned, Egypt's state news agency MENA said on Monday.

Egypt's Assistant Foreign Minister for Consular Affairs Ahmed Rizq was quoted as saying that the ship sank some 30 km off the coast due to a holed hull after setting sail from Libya's northern port Sidi Bilah, near the capital of Tripoli, on Sunday morning.

Libyan search and rescue operations recovered the bodies of those who drowned in the accident, among which 10 identified as Egyptians, said Rizq.

Twenty passengers, including six Egyptians, were saved by Libyan rescue workers, according to the official.

It is not immediately known how many passengers of the 257 on board have died and what their nationalities are.

(Xinhua News Agency March 31, 2009)