The migrants, 162 Tunisians and a Moroccan, were 12 kilometers out to sea. They say they are 8 to 48 years old. They were taken to the port of Sfax, where the coastguard received them.
Migrants often leave the coasts of Tunisia for Europe, especially Italy.
More than 55,000 migrants arrived in Italy last year, up from just under 30,000 in 2020, according to official Italian statistics.
According to statistics from the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, about 1,300 migrants went missing or drowned in the Mediterranean last year.