At least 5,000 migrants were rescued in 43 operations across the Mediterranean Sea on Thursday (June 23), the Italian Coast Guard reports.<br /><br /> The majority were found in rubber dinghies. According to authorities, a body was found aboard one of the vessels.<br /><br /> Aid organisation Médécins sans frontières reported that the people aboard some of the boats were in a “state of panic.”<br /><br /> Liberian national Musa Fafani was one of a group of people rescued near the Libyan coast.<br /><br /> “I’m very happy because life, our situation in Africa is very difficult. For me, I was in Liberia because of Ebola crisis I lost all my family,” he said.<br /><br /> According to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, more than 56,200 people had reached Italy by sea between January and June 19 this year.<br /><br /> Over 2,800 migrants lost their lives in the Mediterranean in the first six months of 2016, the UNHCR reports.<br />
