The Italian coastguard said it had coordinated the rescue of more than 3,300 migrants sailing across the Mediterranean Sea on Friday, but also found 17 corpses on several of the rickety boats.

The Italian coastguard said it had coordinated the rescue of more than 3,300 migrants sailing across the Mediterranean Sea on Friday, but also found 17 corpses on several of the rickety boats.

Distress calls were made from 17 boats, and several other rescue operations were still underway late Friday evening.

The 17 bodies were found on three inflatable dinghies, from which more than
300 other migrants were rescued alive, the Italian navy said on Twitter.

Friday's rescue operations were led by the Italian coastguard and included the help of Italian, German and Irish naval ships working under the auspices of the EU's Frontex border agency.

A similar international maritime rescue mission on Thursday saw more than 700 migrants helped to safety off the coast of Sicily after they had set sail from Libya in six boats.

So far this year, some 1,770 migrants have perished on the hazardous journey to Europe, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), a 30-fold increase on the same period in 2014.

The huge spike in the number of people trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea in recent weeks has been attributed to the worsening security situation in Libya, as well as milder weather.

The European Commission also unveiled plans to make the rest of the 28-nation EU share the burden of frontline states such as Italy, Greece and Malta when it comes to taking in migrants, although some countries like Britain are opposed.