Charity boat rescues 76 migrants in the Mediterranean

An overcrowded wooden boat carrying 76 migrants was rescued by a charitable organisation in the Mediterranean and was being taken to Naples in southern Italy, the organisation announced on Saturday.

The number of individuals attempting the dangerous central Mediterranean crossing is increasing, and on Saturday another boat carrying 59 rescued migrants arrived at Porto Empedocle in southern Sicily.

The 76 persons rescued in international waters in the Maltese Search and Rescue zone on Friday night included seven women and 24 children, according to the organisation EMERGENCY.

They were huddled on the deck, waving and cheering when an EMERGENCY crew arrived in a rubber dinghy that had been deployed from the larger rescue vessel.

Egyptian, Eritrean, Ethiopian, Syrian, and other nationalities were among those saved from the 12-meter boat that had left Libya late on Thursday.

The charity boat, the Life Support, is anticipated to arrive in Naples on Monday after helping to arrange the rescue with Italian officials.

Another humanitarian organisation operating in the Mediterranean, Open Arms, reported that their Astral rescue yacht had arrived in Sicily with 59 people on board, including five children, two of whom were only a few weeks old.

After claiming that it had first been instructed to send the migrants back to Tunisia, Open Arms has petitioned Italian authorities to designate it a port.

According to figures from the interior ministry, Italy has seen about 95,000 arrivals by sea so far this year, more than double the amount in the same period last year. Italy is a significant entry point for thousands of asylum seekers and other migrants entering Europe.

One of the most hazardous migration routes in the world is the central Mediterranean. The International Organisation for Migration reports that since 2014, more than 22,000 migrants have perished or vanished in its seas.

Also on Saturday, a migrant boat capsized while attempting to cross the English Channel, resulting in at least six fatalities and more than 50 rescues.

(With agency inputs)