People rescued on Wednesday after a large ship overturned off Libya's coast with more than 500 migrants aboard, are expected to arrive to Porto Empedocle port in Sicily on Thursday.
Italian naval crews arrived as the boat capsized and recovered seven bodies but saved hundreds of others who were thrown into the sea.
The Italian navy said its Bettica patrol ship was responding to a migrant ship in distress when it flipped.
A photo of the capsized boat taken by the navy showed migrants scrambling up the side of the overturned ship, perching precariously on the exposed side as they awaited rescue, with hundreds more floating in the sea.
Crews tossed life jackets to those in the water and brought 500 to safety, the navy said in a statement.
Rescue operations off Libya's coast have increased in recent weeks amid calm seas and warm weather - conditions that encourage Libyan-based smugglers to crowd hundreds of would-be refugees onto un-seaworthy boats for the trip to Europe.
