The Norwegian rescue ship “Ocean Viking” has picked up 196 migrants from several boats in distress in the Mediterranean off the coast of Libya on Saturday, SOS Méditerranée informs.
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The ship is used by the organization SOS Mediterranée to rescue migrants in the Mediterranean.
First, 57 people were rescued from an inflatable boat that struggled in international waters on Saturday, according to SOS Méditerranée.
In the afternoon, the crew carried out two more rescue operations in the same area outside the North African country.
Among the total of 196 migrants, there were at least two pregnant women and 33 minors, of whom 22 are single, the organization states.
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At least 1,146 people lost their lives at sea in an attempt to reach Europe in the first half of the year, according to the UN Migration Office.
SOS Méditerranée says they have rescued over 30,000 people since February 2016, first with the ship Aquarius, then Norwegian-owned Ocean Viking.
They accuse the EU of failing to coordinate search and rescue operations to deter migrants from leaving war-torn Libya.
Also read: Emergency situation on «Ocean Viking»: – The crew is exhausted
The UN has warned that migrants and refugees in Libya risk torture, human trafficking, rape and other abuses.
Many boats are stopped by the Libyan Coast Guard, which returns migrants and refugees to detention camps. The UN Human Rights Office recently called on Libya and the EU to review their rescue operations, saying they are failing to prioritize “the lives, security and human rights” of people trying to cross the sea from Africa.
Libya’s coastguard is funded by the EU, and Norway also contributes through EU funds to curb the flow of refugees and migrants across the Mediterranean (EUTF).
