Thousands of migrants from Somalia and Eritrea were picked up off the coast of Libya on Monday. The dramatic rescue operation was carried out by Italian naval ships and nongovernmental groups about 13 miles from Libya’s Sabratha. About 7,000 people making the voyage in 20 small wooden boats were saved by groups including Doctors Without Borders and Proactiva Open Arms, many of them cheering as they saw the rescuers approaching. The rescue is just the latest reminder of the dangers faced by migrants fleeing human trafficking, war, and poverty in their homelands, with many of them willing to risk death traveling in shoddy, overcrowded boats across the Mediterranean for the chance of life in Europe.
