- Title: EUROPE-MIGRANTS/CATANIA UPDATE Over 1,000 migrants disembark from HMS Bulwark
- Date: 8th June 2015
- Summary: CATANIA, ITALY (JUNE 8, 2015) (REUTERS) BAREFOOTED WOMEN WALKING DOWN HMS BULWARK GANGPLANK BAREFOOTED WOMAN BEING HELPED BY RED CROSS WORKER TO WALK BAREFOOTED WOMAN IN WHEELCHAIR EMERGENCY SERVICES NEXT TO SHIP BAREFOOTED MAN WALKING DOWN TO PORT SIDE BAREFOOTED MAN BEING HELPED BY RED CROSS WORKERS WOMAN HOLDING YOUNG CHILD IN ARMS MALE MIGRANT GIVEN BOTTLE OF WATER WOM
- Embargoed: 23rd June 2015 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Italy
- Country: Italy
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVAWBCOFCDQXDKS20OZLIEOPPUS
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Some 1143 migrants disembarked from the British Royal Navy assault ship HMS Bulwark at the Sicilian port of Catania on Monday (June 8) after being rescued at sea.
The 19,000-tonne Bulwark, along with its three Royal Navy Merlin helicopters, used to spot migrant vessels in distress, has so far rescued 2,700 people from the sea since joining the Triton mission on May 5.
The migrants rescued included over 50 minors and a dozen pregnant women.
Triton mission is the European Union's search and rescue operation in the Mediterranean.
The migrants onboard the Bulwark are some of the 5,900 migrants that have been plucked from rickety boats over the weekend (June 6-7) as they made the perilous sea crossing from North Africa to Europe.
The tide of migrants and refugees risking the crossing is on the rise this year and the U.N. refugee agency estimates more than 1,800 have drowned. About 800 perished in a single shipwreck in April.
In response, the EU has bolstered its presence in the Mediterranean, but it is still debating how to handle the refugees and migrants once they are ashore. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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