Italy races to save 1,300 migrants in Mediterranean

ROME: Italy´s navy and coastguard said on Friday they were racing to save some 1,300 migrants in difficulty in the Central Mediterranean, nearly two weeks after a deadly shipwreck killed more than 70 people.

Photographs released by the coastguard showed three overcrowded boats that it said were heading towards the southern region of Calabria. The massive rescue operation came as Italy´s right-wing government defended itself from accusations it failed to prevent the deadly shipwreck last month. Friday´s operations were “particularly complex due to the large number of people present on board the drifting boats”, the coastguard said.