Rome  - Around 260 refugees from various African countries landed on the southern Italian island of Lampedusa on Sunday, officials reported.

The would-be immigrants - all were men - were in good health, the authorities said. Their arrival brings to more 1,200 the number of persons in the island's refugee reception centre, a facility designed to contain only 700.

According to the EU border protection agency Frontex reported Thursday, the number of illegal immigrants arriving over the Mediterranean Sea to Italy nearly doubled in the first nine months of 2008 compared to same period in 2007.

More than 25,000 people attempt the dangerous journey in unseaworthy vessels from North Africa into southern Europe each year, with thousands losing their lives. (dpa)