Italian navy rescues 4,400 migrants off Libya coast
4 hours ago
Syrian migrant mother holding
her child cheer as they reach the shore of Eftalou beach, 60 kilometers
north of the port town of Mytilini after crossing the Aegean from Turkey
on the southeastern Greek island of Lesbos, Greece, Sunday, Aug. 23,
2015. Greece this year has been overwhelmed by record numbers of
migrants arriving on its eastern Aegean islands, with more than 160,000
landing so far. (AP Photo/Visar Kryeziu)
Italy's
coast guard said in a statement on Sunday that it had coordinated
rescue efforts involving numerous vessels, including a Norwegian and an
Irish ship as part of the European Union's Triton rescue mission.
Europe is struggling to cope with a record influx of refugees as people flee war in countries such as Syria.The migrants were travelling aboard inflatable dinghies and overcrowded boats, the coast guard said.
The
Mediterranean has become the world's most deadly crossing point for
migrants. More than 2,300 people have died this year in attempts to
reach Europe by boat, according to the International Organisation for
Migration.
Many are seeking alternative routes to Western Europe.
On
Saturday, thousands of rain-soaked migrants stormed across Macedonia's
border as police lobbed stun grenades and beat them with batons, seeking
to enforce a decree to stem their flow through the Balkans to western
Europe.
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