TUNIS: Tunisia has foiled 12 illegal immigration attempts to cross the Mediterranean to Italy over the past two days, according to a statement by the Tunisian National Guard.

The statement on its Facebook page said on Saturday that those immigration attempts were thwarted off the coast of the Sousse, Nabeul and Msaken provinces, Xinhua news agency reported.

Thirty-nine Tunisian nationals were rescued from sinking boats, said the statement, without giving the total number of the immigrants who were trying to cross the Mediterranean toward the Italian island of Lampedusa.

Situated a mere 80 km from the Tunisian coastline, Lampedusa island is often chosen as the first stop for the illegal sea voyages toward Italy.