About 2,700 migrants were rescured from the Mediterranean and brought to
Italy in the space of 24 hours between July 15 and 16, 2015.The
Italian coast guard confirmed the figure, saying nine dinghies and
four wooden boats had been intercepted.Around
350 people arrived in Pozzallo, a port on the island of Sicily.Aid
workers conducting initial interviews with those disembarking said
they seemed to be of Eritrean nationality.
Their
boat journey began in Libya, where several appeared to have been held
in detention.The
rescue was a combined effort between the German and Italian navy,
the Italian Coast Guard and Doctors Without Borders.It came a week
after the European
Union announced the
number of migrants seeking shelter within its borders had skyrocketed
by 68 percent between January and the end of May, 2015, compared with
the same period last year.
