Sixty-four migrants were rescued at sea near the Italian island of Lampedusa, but a child from Sierra Leone remains missing. Meanwhile, Pope Leo XIV is set to visit the island, an important transit point for migrants, in July.
A boat carrying dozens of migrants sank in the Mediterranean just before reaching the Italian island of Lampedusa, the Italian coast guard announced on Sunday (March 15).
Sixty-four people were rescued, while a 2-year-old boy from Sierra Leone remains missing.
Fourteen women and 10 minors were among the rescued, Italian news agency Rai reported, adding that, like the missing child, they had fallen overboard.
Despite searches with a patrol boat and the coast guard's Manta aircraft in the area where the 9-meter vessel sank, no trace of the child has been found, according to Rai. The missing child's mother was disembarked during the night along with the other 63 passengers and is now on the island of Lampedusa.
Authorities said the chances of finding the child alive are extremely low.
The vessel was carrying people from Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Guinea, and Sierra Leone. Survivors reported paying 300 euros (343 US dollars) for the crossing and said they intended to remain in Italy, according to Rai.
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Migrant transit hub to Europe
Lampedusa, located between Sicily and Tunisia (about 90 miles/145 kilometees) off Tunisia’s coast, has long been a vital arrival point for migrants attempting the dangerous sea crossing from North Africa to Europe. Migrants make the journey typically in overcrowded and often unseaworthy boats.
The Mediterranean crossing continues to claim lives, particularly during the winter months when storms make conditions at sea more hazardous. Over 1,000 people are estimated to have died along the route this winter, and several bodies have washed ashore along Italy’s coastline in recent days.
Italian government migrant crackdown in the Mediterranean
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s right-wing government has adopted a stricter approach to irregular migration, placing limits on the operations of charity-run rescue vessels and pushing for faster deportations of migrants whose asylum claims are rejected.
In February, government ministers approved a draft law that could allow authorities to impose a so-called “naval blockade” aimed at preventing migrant boats from entering Italian waters.
Nearly 2,300 migrants have arrived in Italy so far this year, compared with about 5,600 during the same period in 2025 and around 4,200 in the equivalent months of 2024.
Despite the decline in arrivals, the journey across the Mediterranean remains dangerous. At least 547 people died along Mediterranean migration routes in the first month and a half of 2026, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
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Pope Leo XIV to visit Lampedusa in July
Pope Leo XIV is scheduled to travel to the Italian island of Lampedusa in July, the Vatican announced in February. The pontiff has previously expressed gratitude to the residents of Lampedusa for the support and hospitality they have shown to migrants over the years, many of whom arrive in overcrowded and often unsafe boats.
Leo has also repeatedly criticised policies aimed at cracking down on irregular migration. According to the Vatican, the pope will visit Lampedusa on July 4 as part of a series of trips across Italy this summer. His predecessor, Pope Francis, chose Lampedusa for his first official visit after becoming pontiff in July 2013. During that trip, Francis delivered what became one of the defining speeches of his papacy, condemning what he called "the globalisation of indifference." Advocacy for migrants later became a central theme of his leadership. Leo has also addressed the issue in speeches of his own. In October, he said that while countries have the right to protect their borders, they also have a "moral obligation" to offer refuge to those in need.
"With the abuse of vulnerable migrants, we are witnessing, not the legitimate exercise of national sovereignty, but rather grave crimes committed or tolerated by the state," he said in remarks published by the Vatican. "Ever more inhuman measures are being adopted, even celebrated politically, that treat these ‘undesirables’ as if they were garbage and not human beings," he said.
With dpa and AFP