Italian coastguard says 255 migrants rescued in Mediterranean

Some 255 migrants were rescued overnight in the Mediterranean off the coast of Libya, the Italian coastguard said Tuesday. The operation ended just before a front of bad weather hit the area, AFP reports. The non-governmental organization Proactiva Open Arms picked up a rubber dinghy carrying 134 people, including seven children, on Monday night. They were to be transferred to the Aquarius rescue ship operated by another NGO, SOS Mediterranee, before being taken to Sicily. A military ship from the European anti-smuggling operation Sophia rescued 121 people aboard two other boats. According to La Repubblica daily, smugglers have lowered the price of a crossing to $475 per person, in part due to the bad winter weather. However, they are still cramming as many migrants as possible into the dinghies.