FEBRUARY 27: The ship broke up while trying to land near the coastal town of Crotone in the Calabria region. Survivors said at least 150 people were on board.
Many of them were fleeing difficult conditions, the Italian president said.
Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi, who visited the site, said up to 30 people may still be missing.
A baby thought to be just a few months old was among the dead, according to the Italian news agency Ansa.
The bodies were recovered from the beach at a nearby resort.
The coast guard said 80 people were found alive, “including some who made it to shore after the sinking.”
The exact number of people who were on the ship when it broke up is unclear: rescue teams told the AFP news agency that the ship was carrying “more than 200 people”, which would mean more than 60 people missing.
The ship, which left Turkey several days ago, was carrying passengers from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia and Iran.
Large numbers of people fleeing conflict or poverty cross from Africa to Italy every year.
The vessel is reported to have sunk after crashing into rocks during bad weather, prompting a large search and rescue operation on land and sea.
Video footage shows wood from the wreckage that had broken up on the beach, along with parts of the hull.
Survivors are seen huddled under blankets, cared for by Red Cross workers. Some have been taken to the hospital.
“There were landings, but never a tragedy like this,” Cruto mayor Antonio Ceraso told Rai News.
One survivor was arrested on charges of immigrant smuggling, customs police said.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, elected last year in part on a promise to stem the flow of migrants into Italy, expressed “deep grief” and blamed the deaths on traffickers.
“It is inhumane to trade the lives of men, women and children for the ‘ticket’ price they paid in the false prospect of safe travel,” he said in a statement.
“The government is committed to avoiding departures, and with them the development of these tragedies, and it will continue to do so.”
Meloni’s right-wing government has vowed to stop migrants from reaching Italy’s shores and in recent days pushed through a tough new law tightening rules on ransoms.
Carlo Calenda, Italy’s former economy minister, said people in distress at sea must be rescued “whatever the cost” but added that “illegal immigration routes must be closed.”
European Commission President Ursula van der Leyen said she was “deeply saddened” by the incident, adding that “the loss of innocent migrant life is a tragedy.” She said it was crucial to “redouble our efforts” to advance reform of the EU’s asylum rules to address challenges related to migration to Europe.
Pope Francis, who often advocates for the rights of migrants, has said he is praying for the dead, the missing and those who survived.
According to monitoring groups, more than 20,000 people have died or disappeared at sea in the central Mediterranean since 2014.
Regina Catrambone, director of the Migrant Offshore Aid Station, which runs search and rescue operations in the Mediterranean, told the BBC that European countries must work together to help those in need.
He also called for an end to the “myopic view” that countries that are physically closest to Africa and the Middle East should take the lead in tackling the problem.
“There is still no cooperation between European states to actively coordinate to help people in need,” he said, urging governments to work together to improve search and rescue efforts and develop safe and legal routes.
