Irish naval vessel rescues 123 migrants off Libya coast

Irish naval vessel LE Roisin on Saturday rescued 123 people off Libya coast, the military said.

Following a request from Italian maritime rescue authorities, the Irish naval vessel located a 12 meter long rubber vessel craft, 28 nautical miles northwest of Tripoli and rescued the people on board.

But the military said one deceased male migrant was also recovered from the craft.

The rescue operation started at 0800 a.m. local time and took around two and a half hours. All migrants were now receiving food, water and medical treatment on the Irish naval vessel.

LE Roisin has rescued 519 people to date excluding Saturday's figures, according to the military.

Earlier this month, LE Roisin departed the naval service headquarters in Haulbowline, south Ireland's County Cork to assist the Italian authorities in the humanitarian search and rescue operations in the Mediterranean. The Irish naval vessel's search and rescue operations began on May 11.

The role of the Irish naval vessel is to provide a search and rescue capability and to undertake humanitarian rescue operations at sea in the Mediterranean, the military said. Endit