More than 1,000 migrants brought ashore in Italy after multiple rescues

Italy’s conservative government is struggling to contain the influx of migrants, despite repeated promises to stem the flow

More than 1,000 migrants were brought ashore to southern Italy on March 11 after coastguards launched major rescue operations for three boats struggling in rough seas off Calabria.

One coastguard vessel brought 584 people to the city of Reggio Calabria, while another escorted a packed fishing boat carrying 487 migrants into the port of Crotone, close to the scene of a February 26 shipwreck that killed at least 74 people.

Local officials said a further 200 migrants had been picked up off the coast of Sicily and would be ferried to Catania later in the day.

More than 4,000 people have reached Italy since Wednesday, compared to around 1,300 for the whole of March last year, as the country's conservative government struggles to contain the influx, despite repeated promises to stem the flow.

The coastguard dispatched eight boats on Friday to various rescue operations, while a naval patrol boat was also called in to prevent any repeat of last month's disaster, when a migrant ship broke apart a stone's throw from the Calabrian coast.

The body of a young girl was recovered on Saturday, bringing the death toll to 74. Seventy-nine people survived the shipwreck, but around 30 are still missing, presumed dead.

Prosecutors are investigating whether Italian authorities should have done more to prevent the disaster. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has rejected the suggestion and looked to pin the blame entirely on human traffickers.