Rescued immigrants are seen at a naval base in Tripoli, Libya, June 24, 2018. The Libyan navy on Sunday rescued 458 migrants in two separate operations off the coast of the western cities of Al-Khoms and Zlitan. (Xinhua)
TRIPOLI, June 24 (Xinhua) -- The Libyan navy on Sunday rescued 458 migrants in two separate operations off the coast of the western cities of Al-Khoms and Zlitan.
Navy spokesman Ayob Qassem said coast guards patrol rescued 361 migrants on two rubber boats 53 km off the coast of Al-Khoms, some 120 km east of Tripoli.
"The migrants are from different African nationalities, including 88 women and 44 children," he said.
Another coast guards patrol earlier rescued 97 migrants of four African nationalities, including 22 women and 26 children, from a rubber boat, Qassem revealed.
The rescue operation took place off the coast of Zlitan, some 150 km east of Tripoli. They were taken to the Tripoli naval base and transferred to a reception center in the capital.
Last week, the Libyan navy rescued more than 1,000 migrants and recovered bodies of 25 others in separate operations.
Libya is a preferred point of departure for migrants who want to cross the Mediterranean toward Europe because of the insecurity and chaos in their countries.
