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 change 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 line with Inside Ministry figures, greater than 28,000 migrants have arrived in Italy because the begin of the yr – nearly 4 instances those that arrived over the identical interval in 2022.

Nonetheless, the variety of these reaching Italian shores after voyages aboard unseaworthy boats launched by traffickers, often based mostly in Libya or Tunisia, have dwindled in comparison with the tons of of 1000’s who had been rescued at sea just a few 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.