Italy’s Navy and Coast Guard rescued thousands of African and Middle Eastern immigrants who tried to cross the Mediterranean in a span of just 48 hours.  And authorities are more than doubling the border guard on a Spanish exclave in North Africa after some 500-asylum seekers burst through in one day.

Italy first: More than 2,000 immigrants – men, women, and children – in overcrowded or rickety boats who made their way to the Sea from places like Syria and Eritrea had to be rescued by the Italians.  They come in huge numbers because the traffickers who organize this on the coast of Libya wait for days with good weather and send the packed boats north in a flotilla.  There were so many people that two privately-owned vessels were pressed into service.

More than 20,000 people tried to reach Italian territory in 2013 – more than half of the EU's total of illegal migration.

To the west, Madrid sent 100 more police this week in response, and is beefing up the rapid response unit in the event of another mass break-in attempt in Melilla, which is surrounded by Morocco and the Sea.  Immigrants regularly risk their lives on razor wire to try to get in over the walls and claim asylum.  If they’re lucky, they’ll be sent to continental Spain where some stay and others move further into Europe. 

Last month, The European Union demanded to know why Spanish guards in another exclave in Morocco opened fire with rubber bullets on asylum seekers approaching the city from the sea.  15 people died in that episode.