Hundreds migrants rescued in the Mediterranean sea (VIDEO)

Some 418 mainly sub-Saharan migrants who were rescued at sea by the Migrant Offshore Aid Station vessel Phoenix have been taken to port in Messina, Sicily.

Korupciya.world reports citing  UT

The migrants underwent standard identification and health checks in the port before boarding buses that were to take them to shelters in Sicily and mainland Italy.

According to the EU the number of migrants seeking protection in the European Union soared by 68 percent in the first five months of 2015 compared with the year-earlier period.

Read also One thousand rescued migrants mainly from Eritrea disembark in Sicily

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees earlier said that more than 135,000 migrants had arrived in Europe by sea in the first half of 2015, mostly landing in Greece and Italy.