In a series of 40 rescue missions launched off the northern coast of Libya Monday, Italian Coast Guard personnel and several partner agencies saved around 6,500 migrants said to be traveling from Somalia and Eritrea, according to the coast guard.
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A migrant is seen after being rescued during a MOAS operation off the coast of Libya August 18, 2016 in this handout picture courtesy of the Italian Red Cross released on August 19, 2016.
A five-day-old newborn peers out from a pink blanket. Most of the rescues took place off the coast of Libya and one was in Maltese waters.
Among the rescued migrants were infants and small children.
Migrants, majority from Eritrea, jump into the water from a crowded wooden boat as they are helped by members of an NGO during a rescue operation at the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016.
The scene on Sunday was equally grim: NGOs rescued 1,100 migrants in the Strait of Sicily, Italy’s coast guard reports.
Most of the migrants rescued this week came from sub-Saharan Africa.
The vessels are often flimsy and overcrowded while some of the migrants set off in such poor health that even if the crossing is calm they can not survive a day at sea.
With migration routes through Turkey and the Balkans restricted, more and more people are trying the Mediterranean route between Libya and Italy.
The instability in Libya has made the country a hub for people-trafficking. Vessels tend to be more crowded, often carrying 600 or more passengers, according to the U.N. Refugee Agency. Millions of migrants have been driven toward Europe via the Mediterranean.
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Last year, more than 1m migrants arrived in Europe.
