Forty-four migrants who spent days adrift at sea before being rescued by an Italian navy vessel are set to arrive in Sicily this morning after a successful operation involving Maltese, Italian and Tunisian search and rescue units.

The migrants’ boat sent out a series of SOS calls on Tuesday evening when they were still within Libya’s search and rescue region.

The Armed Forces of Malta said yesterday its Rescue and Coordination Centre immediately alerted shipping vessels in the area and established contact with the migrants themselves.

The Tunisian authorities had dispatched a patrol craft to the migrants’ reported location but failed to locate the boat, the AFM said.

By Wednesday afternoon, the boat was tracked as having entered Malta’s search and rescue zone. A series of sea and land searches on Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning by Maltese and Frontex sea vessels and aircraft also failed to pinpoint the boat.

The boat was finally spotted by an Italian fishing vessel on Thursday evening, 56 nautical miles off Lampedusa. An Italian navy vessel four nautical miles away took the migrants on board. A woman who had recently given birth was taken to Lampedusa by helicopter for urgent medical care.

Last month, Italy had declared Lampedusa an “unsafe port” and said it was no longer a safe point of disembarkation for migrant vessels.

According to international law, any vessel that comes across a distressed vessel is obliged to rescue people onboard, irrespective of its flag or location.