On 27 January, the Rescue Coordination Centre in Malta received a notification regarding a boat potentially in distress approximately 200 nautical miles off Malta, which also reported that two males were deceased on board, the Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) said in a statement.

"The Rescue Coordination Centre immediately initiated rescue coordination efforts and dispatched an AFM patrol vessel to the location. Due to the distance, the journey from Malta to the area took over 16 hours. However, the individuals on board were provided assistance by another vessel in the area until the AFM patrol vessel arrived on site. During the operation, an additional 23 individuals were recovered from the boat," it said. There were no further details with the statement.

Sources said that the rescued individuals are on their way to Malta.