Post date: Oct 23, 2013 3:26:38 PM
Maltese armed forces releases dramatic video of more than 100 migrants rescued from theMediterranean Sea on October 11.
AT SEA (OCTOBER 11, 2013) (MALTESE ARMED FORCES) - Maltese armed forces on Tuesday (October 22, 2013) released dramatic video of dozens of migrants rescued from the sea off Malta on October 11.
The video taken from a Maltese military aircraft which earlier spotted a vessel in distress shows the migrants swimming and floating in the Mediterranean Sea 118 nautical miles from Malta and 60 nautical miles from Lampedusa after their boat capsized.
Dozens of people drowned when the boat carrying around 250 migrants flipped over. Italian media said that the boat capsized when panicked people aboard waved for help.
Maltese authorities coordinated the rescue operation, in international waters but in a Maltese rescue zone.
Some survivors were brought into Maltese capital Valetta after a ten hour journey.
According to the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, 32,000 migrants have arrived in southern Italyand Malta this year alone, around two thirds of whom have filed requests for asylum.
Most migrants come from sub-Saharan Africa, but this year many are fleeing the civil war in Syria or political turmoil in Egypt and other parts of North Africa. Many are drawn by hopes of finding work inEurope and often do not stay in Italy.