The Ocean Viking, a rescue ship chartered by SOS Méditerranée, has rescued more than 500 people in distress in 11 rescue operations lasting more than 42 hours in the southwest of the Italian island of Lampedusa, the humanitarian NGO said on Friday. based in Marseille, in the south of France.
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“Already 11 rescue operations have been carried out for more than 42 hours and more than 500 people have been rescued,” said the SOS Méditerranée and International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent teams on board the Ocean Viking, the NGO said in a press release on Friday .
“Rescue operations are still underway in the search and rescue area between Tunisia and Lampedusa,” SOS Méditerranée said.
The Ocean Viking “received instructions from the Italian rescue coordination center on Thursday to support sea emergencies southwest of Lampedusa,” the statement said.
According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the central Mediterranean is the most dangerous migration route in the world. The UN agency estimates that 1,848 migrants have disappeared there since the beginning of 2023, compared to 1,417 for all of 2022.
In June, a shipwreck believed to be one of the worst involving migrants in the Mediterranean killed at least 82, but in the eastern Mediterranean.
The Ocean Viking was detained for 10 days in July by Italian authorities who accused her of safety issues, but was allowed to return to sea on July 21.