(VALLETTA) - Three boat people drowned off Malta on Thursday and another 110 were rescued and brought to the Mediterranean island state, the army said.

Three women, including one who was pregnant, drowned after their boat capsized some 60 nautical miles southwest of Malta.

The other 25 passengers were rescued, an army spokesman told AFP.

In a separate incident, 85 boat people were rescued by the Italian ship Fenice and taken to Malta, he said.

Another 73 people were being escorted to Malta after being spotted by the Fenice, bringing the total of Thursday's arrivals to the island to 183.

The Fenice is part of a programme of patrols in the Mediterranean by the EU agency Frontex.

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