ROME — More than 2,000 migrants hoping to get to Italy were rescued from rickety converted fishing boats off Libya on Saturday and many more were reported to be aboard other distressed vessels in the area.
Malta-based private rescue mission MOAS (Migrant Offshore Aid Station) said in a tweet that it had coordinated the rescue of over 2,000 people together with Italian, Irish and German ships.
Italy’s coastguard could not confirm the numbers but said it was trying to get to a number of other boats which had requested assistance.
The number of migrants attempting the crossing on boats organized by people traffickers has increased by over ten percent in the first five months of 2015, suggesting last year’s figure of 170,000 migrants arriving in Italy will be surpassed.
HMS Bulwark, a British Royal Navy ship, was one of a number of vessels alerted to the situation and was heading for Libyan waters at full speed, according to Sky News, which has a reporter on board.
Get The Times of Israel's Daily Edition
by email and never miss our top stories
By signing up, you agree to the
terms
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
— Gabriella Jacobs, multimedia journalist
Support our work
Support our work
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
You're a dedicated reader
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Join Our Community
Join Our Community
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
