Valletta  - Ten would-be illegal immigrants were reported dead on Wednesday by eight African survivors who were found floating on a semi-submerged dinghy off Malta.

The eight survivors, rescued by a Maltese fishing-vessel, said they were the sole remnants of a group that originally totalled 18, according to the Maltese army.

A Maltese patrol vessel taking part in the European Union border patrols was immediately sent to the area, some 40 nautical miles south of the Mediterranean island.

A rescue helicopter was also scrambled to the scene to establish if there were any other survivors, but the search proved to be in vain.

Malta has been inundated with African migrants this year, with hundreds of others drowning as they attempted to make the perilous crossing from Africa to Europe.

A total of 108 would-be illegal immigrants landed in Malta in two groups on Sunday. (dpa)