Sunday, September 11, 2016

More Than 3,400 Rescued Off Libyan Coast This Weekend
Sunday 11 September 2016 17.03

The LÉ James Joyce has rescued another 108 migrants off the Libyan coast as the total number rescued this weekend passes 3,400.

The crew of the Irish vesselrescued 423 people yesterday, and organised the rescue of a further 1,500 people by NGO vessels, some 40 nautical miles northwest of the Libyan capital, Tripoli.

A further 108 people were rescued from a rubber vessel some 35 miles northwest of Tripoli this morning.

They were given food, water and medical treatment on board before being transferred to an Italian coastguard vessel.

The Italian coastguard and British navy also took part in rescue operations over the weekend, as well as a number of NGO boats.

The weekend's arrivals come on the heels of a big migrant wave at the end of August, when more than 14,000 people were plucked to safety in the space of five days. Most were from sub-Saharan Africa.

According to Italy's interior ministry, about 124,500 migrants have arrived since the start of 2016, just slightly more than the 122,000 recorded for the whole of last year.

Italy is sheltering growing numbers of would-be refugees as its neighbours to the north move to tighten their borders and make it harder for migrants to travel to their preferred destinations in northern Europe.

According to interior ministry figures this month, Italy now has 155,000 migrants in reception centres, compared with 103,000 in 2015 and 66,000 in 2014.

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