Italy Says It Rescued 3,600 Migrants From the Sea in 48 Hours

Italy has rescued 3,600 migrants from rickety boats sailing from Africa to Europe in the past two days, officials said. Hundreds were taken to the Sicilian port of Catania.

The Interior Ministry expects human cargo to the southern European nation to increase by 30,000 to 200,000 this year, Reuters reports.

Many migrants embark from Libya, where a prevailing lawlessness creates conditions favorable to those seeking to profit from the demand for illegal passages to Europe.

This week, the European Union declared it would absorb an additional 20,000 refugees and more evenly disperse asylum seekers across member states.

The death toll from migrant boat journeys is expected to move beyond 2,000 in 2015. In early May, approximately 6,800 people were brought ashore to safety by European rescue missions.

[Reuters]

Boat Migrants Risk It All for New Life in Europe

Italian navy rescues asylum seekers traveling by boat off the coast of Africa on the Mediterranean, June 7, 2014.

Massimo Sestini—Polaris

A soldier using binoculars to spot boats carrying asylum seekers, June 2, 2014.

Massimo Sestini—Polaris

Refugees rescued off a boat and carried onto an Italian navy ship, June 7, 2014.

Massimo Sestini—Polaris

Italian navy rescues asylum seekers traveling by boat off the coast of Africa, June 7, 2014.

Massimo Sestini—Polaris

Italian soldier carries a Syrian child on a ship after the Italian navy rescued 443 Syrian asylum seekers off a fishing vessel, June 5, 2014.

Massimo Sestini—Polaris

African asylum seekers rescued off boats and taken aboard an Italy navy ship, June 8, 2014.

Massimo Sestini—Polaris

An empty dinghy with leftover lifesavers after the Italian navy rescued asylum seekers off the coast of Africa, June 7, 2014.

Massimo Sestini—Polaris

Syrian refugees sleeping on an Italian navy ship after being rescued from a fishing vessel carrying 443 Syrian asylum seekers, June 5, 2014.

Massimo Sestini—Polaris

Syrian refugees on an Italian navy ship after being rescued from a fishing vessel carrying 443 Syrian asylum seekers, June 5, 2014.

Massimo Sestini—Polaris

Syrian refugees sleeping on an Italian navy ship after being rescued from a fishing vessel carrying 443 Syrian asylum seekers, June 5, 2014.

Massimo Sestini—Polaris

African asylum seekers rescued off boats and taken aboard an Italy navy ship, June 8, 2014.

Massimo Sestini—Polaris

African refugees rescued by the Italian navy at night off a rubber dinghy, June 8, 2014.

Massimo Sestini—Polaris

African asylum seekers rescued off boats and taken aboard an Italian navy ship, June 8, 2014.

Massimo Sestini—Polaris

African asylum seekers on board a rescue craft dispatched from an Italian navy ship, June 7.

Massimo Sestini—Polaris

Africa refugees on an Italian navy ship after being rescued at sea, June 8, 2014.

Massimo Sestini—Polaris

A mother and child on a Italian navy ship after being rescued from a fishing vessel carrying 443 Syrian asylum seekers, June 5, 2014.

Massimo Sestini—Polaris

Abandoned boats graveyard in Lampedusa, May 29, 2014.

Massimo Sestini—Polaris

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