Spain: Children and women among 329 migrants rescued at sea
Posted January 29, 2018 6:00 am
MADRID (AP) - Spanish officials say more than 300 people including newborns have been rescued from a wooden boat off Libya's coast and taken to an Italian port.
The Defense Ministry said water was flooding the boat when rescuers reached it Saturday northeast of the Libyan town of Misrata.
The ministry said a Spanish frigate working on a European border patrol mission and a vessel of the Spanish non-governmental organizations Proactiva Open Arms transferred 329 people from the wooden boat. The migrants included 95 women, three of them pregnant, and 17 children - some of them newborns.
The International Organization for Migration says 4,742 migrants entered Europe by sea this year through Jan. 25, and that 206 others died en route.
The ministry said Monday the migrants were taken Sunday to Italy.
In this Saturday Jan. 27, 2018, photo, Spanish soldiers assist 329 refugees and migrants, mostly from Eritrea and Bangladesh, in collaboration with aid workers of the Spanish NGO Proactiva Open Arms, after they left Libya trying to reach European soil aboard an overcrowded wooden boat, 45 miles north of Al-Khums, Libya. (AP Photo/Santi Palacios)
The Associated Press
In this Saturday Jan. 27, 2018 photo, 329 refugees and migrants, mostly from Eritrea and Bangladesh, wait to be rescued by aid workers after leaving Libya trying to reach European soil aboard an overcrowded wooden boat, 45 miles north of Al-Khums, Libya. (AP Photo/Santi Palacios)
The Associated Press
In this Saturday Jan. 27, 2018, photo, 329 refugees and migrants, mostly from Eritrea and Bangladesh, wait to be rescued by aid workers of the Spanish NGO Proactiva Open Arms, after leaving Libya trying to reach European soil aboard an overcrowded wooden boat, 45 miles north of Al-Khums, Libya. (AP Photo/Santi Palacios)
The Associated Press
In this Saturday Jan. 27, 2018, photo, a woman reacts aboard a rescue speed boat from the Spanish NGO Proactiva Open Arms after being rescued from a wooden boat transfer 329 refugees and migrants, mostly from Eritrea and Bangladesh, from an overcrowded, 45 miles north of Al-Khums, Libya. (AP Photo/Santi Palacios)
The Associated Press
In this Saturday Jan. 27, 2018, photo, Spanish soldiers assist 329 refugees and migrants, mostly from Eritrea and Bangladesh, in collaboration with aid workers of the Spanish NGO Proactiva Open Arms, after they left Libya trying to reach European soil aboard an overcrowded wooden boat, 45 miles north of Al-Khums, Libya. (AP Photo/Santi Palacios)
The Associated Press
In this Saturday Jan. 27, 2018 photo, aid workers of the Spanish NGO Proactiva Open Arms transfer a group of refugees and migrants from an overcrowded wooden boat to a Spanish war-ship, 45 miles north of Al-Khums, Libya. (AP Photo/Santi Palacios)
The Associated Press
In this Saturday Jan. 27, 2018 photo, aid workers of the Spanish NGO Proactiva Open Arms transfer a group of refugees and migrants from an overcrowded wooden boat to a Spanish war-ship, 45 miles north of Al-Khums, Libya. (AP Photo/Santi Palacios)
The Associated Press
In this Saturday Jan. 27, 2018, photo, Spanish soldiers assist 329 refugees and migrants, mostly from Eritrea and Bangladesh, in collaboration with aid workers of the Spanish NGO Proactiva Open Arms, after they left Libya trying to reach European soil aboard an overcrowded wooden boat, 45 miles north of Al-Khums, Libya. (AP Photo/Santi Palacios)
The Associated Press
In this Saturday Jan. 27, 2018 photo, aid workers of the Spanish NGO Proactiva Open Arms transfer a group of refugees and migrants from an overcrowded wooden boat to a Spanish war-ship, 45 miles north of Al-Khums, Libya. (AP Photo/Santi Palacios)
The Associated Press
Article Comments
Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked.
If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.