More than 2,000 migrants rescued in Mediterranean

MORE than 2,000 migrants have been rescued from five wooden boats in the Mediterranean Sea this Saturday (June 6).

There are ongoing operations to rescue migrants from seven other crafts, according to the Italian Coast Guard officers and the Migrant Offshore Aid Station (MOAS).

“MOAS coordinated the rescue of 2,000 people with the help of Italian, Irish and German boats,” informed MOAS via twitter.

Specifically, the boat ‘Phoenix’ has rescued 372 migrants, most of them Eritrean, from one of the drifting boats.

An Irish craft, LE Eithne, rescued 310 people, approximately 50 km off the coasts of Libya, according to the Irish Defence.

During the first five months of 2015, more than 46,500 migrants have been rescued from Mediterranean waters and taken to Italy, 12 per cent more than the same period of 2014, according to the UN.

The Italian government is expecting to receive at least 200,000 more migrants during the rest of the year, 30,000 more than in 2014.