According to Italian authorities, a boat carrying about 50 people in the central Mediterranean sank in waters off the coast of the island of Lampedusa.
A two-year-old girl died in the accident and eight other people were reported missing.
On Monday, the Italian coastguard managed to rescue 42 people, including the girl, with the help of a local fishing boat, but she later died aboard a rescue vessel heading for the island, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on Tuesday.
Search and rescue efforts using boats and helicopters are continuing as eight people are still missing. Authorities said two children were among the missing.
Lampedusa has seen an increase in migrant arrivals in recent days, with 11 boats landing on Monday with around 800 people on board. Among them was a sea trawler with 576 people on board from Morocco, Egypt, Syria, Pakistan, Iraq and Bangladesh.
According to the latest figures from the Interior Ministry, 150,000 migrants have already arrived in Italy over the year, compared to about 94,000 in the same period last year.
