Thousands of migrants rescued off Libyan coast

Thousands of migrants have been rescued off the coast of Libya by Italian naval ships and other civilian vessels.

Italian Coastguard said that 6,500 migrants had been rescued, just a day after around 1,100 migrants, mostly from Somalia, were saved from the Strait of Sicily.

Tens of thousands of Africans have been making the dangerous Mediterranean crossing in search of a better life in Europe.