Rescue ship picks up more than 200 migrants in Mediterranean

Migrants, including 67 children, were rescued in four operations since Thursday

Migrants on a dinghy are rescued by members of the charity SOS Mediterranee from the 'Aquarius' vessel, about 50 kilometres off the Libyan coast, on June 25, 2021. EPA

The migrant rescue ship Ocean Viking has rescued 203 people, including 67 children, in recent days, its owner SOS Mediterranee said on Sunday.

The migrants came from Egypt, Gambia, Libya, South Sudan, Syria and Tunisia, the charity organisation said on Twitter. They were rescued in four operations since Thursday.

In one rescue, in the waters around Malta on Sunday, Ocean Viking picked up 71 migrants in an overloaded wooden boat that left Libya three days earlier, SOS Mediterranee said.

They had used up their food and water and four people "had to be evacuated on stretchers", the group said.

Since the start of the year, 886 migrants have died in the Mediterranean while trying to reach Europe, figures compiled by the International Organisation for Migration show.