Italy rescues 2000 migrants in 48 hours
Mar 19, 2014, 11:10 PM EDT
Italian Navy/AFP
Italian authorities say they have rescued more than 2,000 illegal migrants, many from North Africa, off Sicily's coast in the past 48 hours. The announcement came a day after some 500 people forced their way into Spain's North African enclave of Melilla. In response, the Spanish government has doubled the number of security forces there.
Background:
More than 2,000 migrants rescued off Italy in 48 hours [BBC]
Italian ships rescue more than 2,000 migrants in 48 hours [Reuters]
