Crew members of the Ocean Viking rescue ship save a boat carrying migrants in the international waters off Libya on Jan 16. Sameer Al-Doumy/AFP
More than 40 migrants in distress on a rubber dinghy were rescued in January by the Ocean Viking crew in international waters off the coast of Libya, as they attempted to reach the Italian island of Lampedusa. This was the first rescue of the year carried out by the ship operated by SOS Mediterranee.
The migration route from North Africa to Southern Europe is considered one of the world's most dangerous. According to the International Organization for Migration, nearly 24,500 people have died or disappeared crossing the Mediterranean in the past decade.
In the first six months of 2025,30,060 refugees and migrants arrived in Italy by sea — a 16 percent increase compared with the same period in 2024, according to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.
These arrivals have occurred amid a broader trend of European countries tightening immigration controls. In December, European Union member states approved stricter immigration policies. These include opening return centers outside the EU for rejected asylum-seekers and imposing harsher penalties on migrants who refuse to leave, as reported by Agence France-Presse.
Crew members evacuate migrants suffering from severe dehydration and seasickness on Jan 17. SAMEER AL-DOUMY/AFP
Most fatalities have been linked to small boats departing from the coasts of Tunisia and Libya. While departures from Tunisia have decreased due to tightened border enforcement (which often involves intercepting people and forcing them toward the desert near the Algerian border), Libya remains the key departure point for boats crossing the central Mediterranean.
Located about 300 kilometers from the Italian coast, Libya is a major North African departure point for migrants, most of whom are from sub-Saharan Africa and risk their lives attempting to cross the Mediterranean Sea.
However, many are prevented from leaving Libya due to interceptions by the EU-supported Libyan Coast Guard. In the first half of 2025, the International Organization for Migration estimated that around 12,000 people were intercepted and returned to Libya, and that 588 people died during the same period.
Migrants onboard a rubber boat wait to be rescued in the search-and-rescue zone in the international waters off Libya on Jan 16. SAMEER AL-DOUMY/AFP
According to Alarm Phone, a support network of over 200 activists on both sides of the Mediterranean, any statistics on interceptions and deaths should be treated as rough estimates, as many incidents go undocumented.
Despite the ongoing challenges and hostility toward their solidarity efforts, civil fleet organizations have continued rescue operations. The Civil Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre reported that civil fleet vessels rescued more than 7,000 people in the first half of 2025.
Alarm Phone also stated that it was alerted to 334 boats in distress in the central Mediterranean during the first six months of last year.
Agencies contributed to this story.
An aerial view of the Ocean Viking rescue ship on Jan 16. SAMEER AL-DOUMY/AFP
A crew member of a rescue ship provides medical care to an exhausted migrant on Jan 16. SAMEER AL-DOUMY/AFP
Migrants suffering from severe dehydration and seasickness lie on the floor onboard a ship off the coast of Libya on Jan 17. SAMEER AL-DOUMY/AFP
Crew members of a rescue ship evacuate migrants suffering from severe dehydration and seasickness on the ship on Jan 17. SAMEER AL-DOUMY/AFP
Migrants sit on the aft deck of the rescue ship Ocean Viking in international waters off the coast of Libya on Jan 17. SAMEER AL-DOUMY/AFP
