EU says 7,000 Migrants Rescued Near Italy since Friday

The European Union says that more than 7,000 migrants have been plucked from the Mediterranean since Friday

Migrants on a Coast Guard dinghy boat arrive at the Sicilian Porto Empedocle harbor, Italy, Monday, April 13, 2015. AP/Calogero Montanalampo

BRUSSELS—More than 7,000 migrants have been plucked from the Mediterranean since Friday, according to the European Union, in an unprecedented wave of people fleeing conflict and poverty.

Of those 7,000 EU migration spokeswoman Natasha Bertaud said Tuesday that “over 3,500 are still on board rescue vessels and being taken to Italy and so far, 11 bodies were recovered.”