Italian navy rescues 730 migrants from sea

By Rebecca Walezak

730 migrants were rescued by the Italian navy from two overcrowded boats Wednesday.

According to CNN the boats left North Africa and were heading to Sicily’s Agrigento province. The boats were losing their ability to float in water and none of the passengers had life jackets. There were 124 woman and 29 children total on the boats.

These overcrowded vessels are reportedly common by Sicily. Over 300 deaths have happened due to these shipwrecks. In the last year, over 12,000 illegal migrants were found at the shore of Sicily. According to the European border agency Frontex, they are, in majority, headed to Libya.

Other migrants that have appeared come from Syria, Somalia and Eritrea.

WSJ reports a similar situation in which the Italian navy rescued 1,100 migrants off the shores of Rome. The migrants were also being transported from Africa.

The U.N. refugee agency is trying to determine what is causing the high number of illegal migrants and build legal alternatives for them so dangerous ocean travel is not necessary.