Some 3,200 migrants were plucked from overcrowded boats off the coast of Libya on Tuesday and one dead body was recovered, Italy's coast guard said, as people smugglers operating in Libya took advantage of calm seas and warm weather.

A coast guard spokesman said the smugglers had sent at least 26 boats toward Italy, the latest in a tide of migrants fleeing war and poverty in Africa, the Middle East and Asia.

Three Italian navy ships took part in rescues, picking up more than 1,000 of those brought to safety. British and Spanish ships operating within the European Union's anti-people-smuggling mission also conducted rescues.

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Refugees and migrants from Eritrea, Mali, Bangladesh and other countries wait on board a dinghy to be rescued in the Mediterranean Sea, 27 kilometers (17 miles) north of Sabratha, Libya

The wave of migrants is typical for this time of year as smugglers operating in Libya take advantage of calm seas and warm weather

The Doctors Without Borders charity and migrant rescue groups MOAS and Sea Watch also participated. An Irish navy ship and a private tug boat completed the cast of rescuers.

A deal struck between the EU and Turkey and border closures have helped to stem the flow of migrants from the Middle East and Asia coming through Turkey and Greece. But Italy has received about the same number of migrants setting off from North Africa this year as during the same period of 2015.

Some of the migrants in life jackets acknowledged the cameras as others clung on to the boats

In this photo, a team of the Spanish NGO Proactiva Open Arms transfer a group of refugees and migrants from an overcrowded wooden boat, with about 1,000 people on board, to a Italian war ship, seen in the background

Sub-saharan refugees and migrants on an overcrowded dinghy wait to be rescued 24 miles north of Sabratha, Libya

The migrants were found inside the so called Search and Rescue zone SAR, early in the morning on Tuesday

Almost 3,000 boat migrants have died or gone missing in the Mediterranean this year, according to the International Organization for Migration

As of Monday, 79,861 migrants had arrived in Italy by sea, compared with 83,119 during the same period of last year, while the number of migrants arriving in Greece from Turkey was down 95 percent.

Almost 3,000 boat migrants have died or gone missing in the Mediterranean this year, according to the International Organization for Migration.

A wave of migrants is typical at this time of year as calm seas return to the Mediterranean, prompting a surge in departures from North Africa.

Italy has been on the front line of Europe's worst immigration crisis since World War Two and now in its third year. More than 320,000 boat migrants came to Italy from North Africa in 2014-15.

Nigerians, Eritreans and Gambians were the top three migrant nationalities this year, the Interior Ministry said, and more than 125,000 are now living in Italian shelters.

Three Italian navy ships took part in rescues when dozens of people were found crammed into wooden boat

Migrants sit in their boat during a rescue operation by Italian navy ship Borsini (unseen) off the coast of Sicily

A rescue worker is seen holding two babies after picking them up from the smuggler boats