1700 migrants attain island of Lampedusa

Round 1700 migrants have reached the island of Lampedusa within the final 48 hours, inflicting the native reception level to turn into overcrowded.

The tiny Sicilian island lies solely about 150 kilometres (90 miles) from the Tunisian coast.

Footage from Sky Italia captured on Sunday confirmed dozens of migrants aboard an Italian Coast Guard vessel being helped off the boat and onto an awaiting mini-van.

In keeping with Inside Ministry figures, greater than 28,000 migrants have arrived in Italy for the reason that begin of the yr – virtually 4 occasions those that arrived over the identical interval in 2022.

Nevertheless, the variety of these reaching Italian shores after voyages aboard unseaworthy boats launched by traffickers, normally based mostly in Libya or Tunisia, have dwindled in comparison with the a whole lot of 1000’s who have been rescued at sea a couple of years earlier.

Since its inception six months in the past, Giorgia Meloni’s right-wing coalition authorities, which incorporates anti-migrant League chief Matteo Salvini, has cracked down on humanitarian rescue boats working within the central Mediterranean north of Libya.