More than 600 people have been rescued in the last few hours in the Central Mediterranean, aboard humanitarian ships, the NGOs Sea Watch and SOS Humanity announced today.
The humanitarian ship Sea Watch 3 has 394 migrants on board, after the crew carried out three more rescues on Saturday.
“The first 20 people were rescued from a speedboat. Immediately afterwards, 58 more people were pulled from a boat in distress. […]. Shortly after, 13 more people were brought to safety,” Sea Watch said in a statement.
After nine rescues, there are now 394 people on board the ship.
The NGO (non-governmental organization) also criticized the “racist and isolationist” policies of the European Union, demanding “freedom of movement for all”.
The Humanity 1 ship has 208 people on board, including a baby.
In his last operation alone, he rescued 25 migrants.
“All survivors are being treated on board. Our medical team carried out dozens of medical examinations that revealed several serious injuries from abuse. According to survivors, most of these injuries occurred in Libya,” said the NGO SOS Humanity.
This year, 62,000 migrants arrived on the Italian coast, compared to 40,000 in the same period last year.
Source: Observadora
