More than 800 migrants rescued from Mediterranean
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| (File) An Italian coast guard officer checks a the Mediterranean |
Italian authorities on Thursday rescued more than 800 migrants from four boats trying to reach the island of Lampedusa, the Italian navy said.
As the closest Italian
island to Africa, Lampedusa, in the Mediterranean Sea, is a frequent
destination for refugees seeking to enter European Union countries, and
shipwrecks off its shores are common.
Navy and air force
helicopters spotted the four boats, which "appeared in precarious
floating conditions and overcrowded," the navy said in a statement.
The migrants were being
transferred to a Navy ship and will be brought to the port of Augusta in
Sicily. They were from Africa and countries such as Egypt, Pakistan and
Iraq.
A day earlier, more than 200 migrants were rescued from the sea and also taken to the port of Augusta.
More than 300 African
migrants died in October after their ship sank off the island's shores.
Days later, another 34 people died when their boat capsized.
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