Three babies have been born on an Italian Coast Guard ship that rescued thousands of migrants in the Mediterranean.
The babies were reported to be in a good condition, the Coast Guard said.
They were born yesterday aboard the Dattilo ship, which had just rescued more than 1,000 migrants off Catania in Sicily.
Over the course of two days and 72 missions, Italian officials have helped more than 10,000 migrants who were trying to cross the Mediterranean aboard ships and rubber dinghies.
They also discovered 28 bodies, mostly found on a small rickety ship that had been crammed with 1,000 people.
The migrants are believed to be mostly of sub-Saharan origin.
Over the last few days, smugglers have taken advantage of calm seas after days of rough waters to resume their journeys across the Mediterranean.
The Irish naval vessel LÉ Samuel Beckett rescued 652 people during operations in the sea yesterday.
