Tunis: Forty migrants from sub-Saharan Africa were found dead on Wednesday following a shipwreck off the coast of Tunisia, while 30 others were rescued, a judicial spokesman said.

"Initial investigations indicate that there were 70 people on board the vessel," said Walid Chtabri, spokesperson for the public prosecutor's office in Mahdia.

"Forty bodies, including infants, were recovered, and 30 people were rescued," Chtabri added. "They were all from countries in sub-Saharan Africa."

The local authorities are investigating the circumstances of the shipwreck.