Rescue ship saves 600 migrants in the Mediterranean

(Patria) - The rescue ship Ocean Viking has saved more than 600 migrants adrift in the Mediterranean over the past two days, the organisation that operates it, SOS Mediterranee, announced on Friday.

The rescue was carried out southwest of Lampedusa, in waters between the Italian island and Tunisia, the organisation said. An earlier statement referred to more than 500 people rescued in 11 separate rescue operations.

However, a spokesperson for SOS Mediterranee told AFP on Friday evening, "that we have so far rescued 623 migrants since Thursday morning in 15 rescue operations."

Among those rescued are 146 unaccompanied minors, five accompanied minors, and two pregnant women, said the organisation, which is headquartered in Marseille, on the French Mediterranean.
Some of those rescued were to be taken to Lampedusa, and others to the port of Civitavecchia, northwest of Rome, the group added.

Most of those rescued are from Sudan, where a war between rival generals has been raging for the past four months. Others were from Guinea, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Benin, and Bangladesh.
The crew of the Ocean Viking was assisted by teams from the Red Cross and Red Crescent, according to an earlier statement from SOS Mediterranee.

The central Mediterranean is the world's most dangerous sea crossing for migrants. At least 1,848 people have died this year trying to reach Italy and Malta via the central Mediterranean route from North Africa. This is significantly higher than the figure for the entire year of 2022, when the death toll stood at 1,417.