REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, ROME -- Nearly 2,000 African migrants have been rescued in Libyan waters by a major operation of European ships coordinated by the Italian coastal guard, local reports said late on Saturday.

The migrants were trying to reach the Italian southern coast onboard 14 boats, according to Carlotta Sami, spokeswoman of the Refugee Agency of the United Nations (UNHCR). She added that as many as 3,000 migrants could be in trouble on open water.

English, German and Irish ships took part in the rescue operation along with several means of the Italian navy and coastal guard, Rai State television reported.

Rai also added that over 600 migrants were being transported to Sicily in southern Italy. "These boats have obsolete engines, they would have never been able to reach the Italian coast," one of the rescuers, Salvatore Caltagirone, told Rai.

"We need to pool more intelligence, we need to find out who is doing this trafficking, how they are making money from it, and we need to go back and smash the gangs involved," UK Defense Secretary Michael Fallon was quoted by ANSA news agency as saying.

Speaking from one of the vessels participating in the rescue operations, Fallon warned that Europe needs to get together and start tackling the problem much further back. "In the short-term, we need more ships from other European navies to come and help here," he said.

Saturday's rescue mission was the latest in an ongoing migrant crisis which has seen countless migrants try the dangerous crossing of the Mediterranean Sea, many of which fleeing from poverty stricken nations of Syria, Somalia, Eritrea and Nigeria.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has recently estimated that at least 1,826 migrants have lost their lives at sea so far this year.

The Italian Interior Ministry has said that as many as 200,000 migrants could land in Italy for 2015 overall, well above last year's 170,000, further aggravating the emergency at the country's overcrowded refugee centers.

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