Italian coastguard rescues 300 migrants in rough seas

Migrants walk on the quay after disembarking in Roccella Jonica, southern Italy (Alessandra Tarantino/AP

The Italian coastguard has rescued more than 300 young men and boys, most of them from Egypt, from a storm-battered fishing boat in rough seas off the southern mainland.

The rescue began on Saturday night and ended early on Sunday when the 303 migrants, soaked and shivering, stepped on to the port of Roccella Jonica in the Calabria region.