Over 6,500 refugees rescued off Libyan coast
Thu Sep 01, 2016 10:56:am World
2.7K By sosa hills
About 6,500 migrants have been rescued off the Libyan coast, the Italian coastguard said, in one of their busiest days of life-saving in recent years.
Monday's efforts for one of the largest influxes of refugees in a single day this year showed people wearing life jackets jumping off one of the boats and into the Mediterranean before swimming towards rescuers.
Dramatic images showed migrants from Eritrea and Somalia jumping off one of their boats into the Mediterranean and swimming toward rescuers. Others carefully carried babies onto the rescue ships.
"The command centre coordinated 40 rescue operations" that included vessels from Italy, humanitarian organisations and the EU's border agency Frontex and "saved 6,500 migrants", the coastguard wrote on Twitter.
Their boats too weak and technically unequipped for a voyage across the stretch of the Mediterranean to the shores of Italy, the migrants had set off with a small amount of gasoline in the overcrowded vessels, hoping to make it at least 15-20 miles out to sea and reach awaiting rescuers.
More than 3,000 migrants have died at sea while trying to reach either Greece or Italy since the start of this year, an increase of some 50 per cent on the same period in 2015.
The huge influx has put a strain on Italy's reception centres, with many running out of beds to accommodate the new arrivals.
The issue of unaccompanied minors – teenagers travelling without parents or family members - has been particularly acute.
Monday's efforts for one of the largest influxes of refugees in a single day this year showed people wearing life jackets jumping off one of the boats and into the Mediterranean before swimming towards rescuers.
Dramatic images showed migrants from Eritrea and Somalia jumping off one of their boats into the Mediterranean and swimming toward rescuers. Others carefully carried babies onto the rescue ships.
"The command centre coordinated 40 rescue operations" that included vessels from Italy, humanitarian organisations and the EU's border agency Frontex and "saved 6,500 migrants", the coastguard wrote on Twitter.
Their boats too weak and technically unequipped for a voyage across the stretch of the Mediterranean to the shores of Italy, the migrants had set off with a small amount of gasoline in the overcrowded vessels, hoping to make it at least 15-20 miles out to sea and reach awaiting rescuers.
More than 3,000 migrants have died at sea while trying to reach either Greece or Italy since the start of this year, an increase of some 50 per cent on the same period in 2015.
The huge influx has put a strain on Italy's reception centres, with many running out of beds to accommodate the new arrivals.
The issue of unaccompanied minors – teenagers travelling without parents or family members - has been particularly acute.
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