DHAKA: Italy has rescued 4,000 migrants from boats trying to reach European shores in the past 48 hours in a deepening immigration crisis, the interior minister said on Wednesday.

Better sea conditions and turmoil in Libya, grappling with chaos and rampant militias three years after the ousting of Muammar Gaddafi, have increased the numbers risking the perilous sea journey from North Africa to try to reach Europe.

‘The emergency is getting worse and there is no halt to the boats arriving,’ Interior Minister Angelino Alfano told state-owned RAI radio, reports The Straits Times.

‘This issue is serious and Europe must take it in hand, immediately, because this is not a Mediterranean border but a European border.’

BDST: 1717 HRS, APR 09, 2014