Baby is BORN on migrant boat: Italian coastguard official is pictured carrying infant as vessel carrying 41 children and 203 adults is rescued in choppy waters off south coast
- The rescue was complicated by difficult weather and sea conditions and lasted more than 16 hours overnight
- Italy has seen a sharp increase in boat migrants and the arrivals will put further pressure on the Prime Minister
- Some 62,236 migrants have landed in Italy so far in 2021 against 32,542 in the same period last year
Advertisement
The Italian coastguard has rescued 41 children and 203 adults, including a newborn baby, from a boat drifting a few miles off the coast of the Calabria region.
The rescue, carried out overnight on Saturday and Sunday, was complicated by difficult weather and sea conditions and lasted more than 16 hours, the coastguard said in a statement.
A total of 244 people, of which 41 minors including the baby born on the boat on Saturday, were saved.
The Italian coastguard has rescued 41 children and 203 adults, including a newborn baby, from a boat drifting a few miles off the coast of the Calabria region
The rescue, carried out overnight on Saturday and Sunday, was complicated by difficult weather and sea conditions and lasted more than 16 hours, the coastguard said in a statement
Italy has seen a sharp increase in boat migrants in recent weeks and the latest arrivals will put further pressure on Prime Minister Mario Draghi’s government to secure an agreement with European Union partners over how to deal with the influx.
It comes after the Italian coastguard rescued about 300 migrants on November 25 from an overloaded boat that ran into difficulty in rough seas in the Mediterranean as they tried to reach Europe.
Some of the people were floating in the water as rescue units reached the boat about 14 miles from the coast of the southern Italian island of Lampedusa.
The operation overnight on Wednesday and Thursday involved three ships and an airplane, the coastguard said in a statement.
A total of 296 people, including 14 women and 8 minors, were saved.
It comes after the Italian coastguard rescued about 300 migrants on November 25 (pictured) from an overloaded boat that ran into difficulty in rough seas in the Mediterranean as they tried to reach Europe
The operation overnight on Wednesday and Thursday involved three ships and an airplane, the coastguard said in a statement
Some 62,236 migrants have landed in Italy so far in 2021, interior ministry data show, against 32,542 in the same period last year
Some of the people were floating in the water as rescue units reached the boat about 14 miles from the coast of the southern Italian island of Lampedusa
Another 203 migrants travelling on three separate boats disembarked in the two days before November 25 in the southern region of Calabria, adding more pressure on Italy’s rescue capacity.
In a separate statement German NGO Sea-Watch said on Saturday that 461 people are disembarking from its rescue ship in Augusta, Sicily.
Some 62,236 migrants have landed in Italy so far in 2021, interior ministry data show, against 32,542 in the same period last year.