67 migrants rescued in two operations

The Armed Forces of Malta yesterday rescued 39 illegal immigrants from a six-metre dinghy that was short of fuel and taking in water to the south of Malta.

The whole operation lasted nearly 24 hours. The AFM received a report of a boat in distress some 80 miles off the Libyan coast at 9.45 p.m. on Thursday. The distress call was made by one of the migrants on board using a satellite phone, the AFM said.

A search and rescue operation was launched immediately. Coordinated from Malta, it involved an aircraft from the US Sixth Fleet, another from the Italian Navy, as well as an Italian coastguard patrol boat.

The US plane spotted the dinghy about 68 miles off Delimara at 1.35 p.m. yesterday, and the AFM sent out their Protector Class Patrol Boat P-51.

By 3 p.m. all the 39 immigrants - 34 men, three women and two children - had been rescued from the sinking craft.

The patrol boat, with the immigrants on board, came in at about 9 o'clock last night. They were reported to be in fair health.

Another 28 illegal immigrants reached the shore on Thursday after an American ship rescued them 25 miles off the Maltese coast. The police said the migrants, 25 men and three women, claimed to be coming from Somalia.

The police, the Armed Forces and the Health Department aided the immigrants whose condition was found to be good.