(VOVworld) – At least 8 African refugees and more than 20 other migrants are feared to have drowned in the Mediterranean Sea after their boats capsized.

Refugees massed onto an inflatable boat reaching Mytilene, northern island of Lesbos, after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey, on 17 February, 2016 (file image) Getty Images

108 refugees were rescued Monday from a semi-submerged rubber dinghy by a private rescue ship called Aquarius run by French humanitarian group SOS Mediterranean. Earlier on Sunday, the Aquarius rescued 116 refugees from another rubber dinghy.

On Monday, 33 refugees were rescued from a small island in eastern Sicily by the Italian coast guard. Italian President Sergio Mattarella confirmed the death of hundreds of refugees in the Mediterranean since the outbreak of the migrant crisis.

According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), about 6,000 migrants and refugees have sailed from Libya to Italy in the past week, which appears to be the start of a wave that could surpass 100,000 refugees this year.