Twenty sailors rescued after ship sinks off Lebanon

Beirut, Dec 18 : At least 20 crew members were rescued from a ship that sank off the northern Lebanon port of Tripoli Thursday, Lebanese security and UN sources said.

"The rescue mission is ongoing amid very bad weather conditions," the UN's Andrea Tennenti told DPA.

The Panama-flagged ship Danny 2, which was transporting livestock, overturned some 10 nautical miles off Tripoli, Lebanese police said.

"We only know that it is a merchant ship with some 83 people on board who are believed to be seamen," Tennenti said.

Ambulances with wailing sirens were seen leaving Tripoli's port with the rescued crew, who were mainly from the Philippines and Pakistan. There was one Lebanese and one Syrian on board.

The Lebanese Army and members of the United Nations Interim Forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL) Maritime Task Force, in a joint mission, launched the operation to rescue those on board, Tennenti said.

Nine Lebanese Navy rescue boats, including a medical team, were at the scene along with three UNIFIL vessels.

The accident took place as severe thunderstorms hit Lebanon.