They were on board two inflatable boats "unfit for navigation", announced the NGO in a press release.
Among them were six pregnant women and "several children", including a three-month-old baby.
A man was also injured, the association said.
Exhausted and “emotionally distressed”
According to initial reports, they had spent up to nine hours at sea and many were exhausted and in "emotional distress", insisted SOS Méditerranée, which operates on board with the help of the International Federation of Red Cross Societies and of the Red Crescent (IFRC).
The central Mediterranean is the most dangerous migration route in the world, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
The UN agency estimates the number of dead and missing there at 1,553 in 2021.
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