Issued on: 14/09/2023 -
Lampedusa (Italy) (AFP) – The tiny Italian island of Lampedusa struggled Thursday to cope with a surge in migrant boats from North Africa after numbers peaked at 7,000 people -- equivalent to the entire local population.
Days of good weather has led to a spurt in arrivals
© Alessandro Serranò / AFP
The local reception centre, built to house fewer than 400 people, was overwhelmed with men, women and children forced to sleep outside on makeshift plastic cots, many wrapped in metallic emergency blankets.
Tensions broke out on Wednesday as food was being distributed by the Italian Red Cross, which runs the facility, causing police to intervene.
Some young men later left the overcrowded centre and went into Lampedusa's historic town centre -- where an AFP photographer found some of them buying ice-cream in a gelateria.
Several said they were hungry. Few had any money, and some restaurants turned them away. But other establishments offered food for free, or residents and tourists paid for them.
Located just 90 miles (around 145 kilometres) off the coast of Tunisia, Lampedusa is one of the first points of call for migrants crossing the Mediterranean.
Days of fine weather has seen a surge in arrivals in recent days, with more than 5,000 people arriving in Italy on Tuesday alone, according to interior ministry figures.
Most are picked up at sea from rickety boats by the coastguard, which brings them to Lampedusa port.
But many do not make it that far. More than 2,000 people have died this year crossing between North Africa and Italy and Malta, according to the UN migration agency.
The latest victim was a five-month-old baby, who reportedly fell into the water early Wednesday as part of a group being brought to shore.
Critical situation
For years, Lampedusa's so-called migrant "hotspot" has struggled to cope with the numbers arriving, with humanitarian organisations reporting a lack of water, food and medical care.
The Italian Red Cross took over in June promising to offer a more "dignified" welcome, but admitted this week it was having difficulty with the surge in arrivals.
It reported more than 7,000 people at the hotspot on Wednesday evening, a figure "causing management problems, even if caused by a small number of people".
Some 5,000 people were due to be transferred by the end of Thursday to Sicily, where there are larger processing facilities.
"The situation is certainly complex and gradually, we are trying to return to normality," Francesca Basile, head of migration for the Italian Red Cross, said on Thursday morning.
She said that "despite the critical situation, we still tried to distribute cots to people to prevent them sleeping out in the open".
"We provided everyone with food and distributed dinner last night and today too everyone will receive what they need."
Italy's hard-right government allocated 45 million euros ($48 million) to Lampedusa earlier this month to help the island better manage the migrant situation.
But Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, elected one year ago on a pledge to end mass migration, is calling for European Union help.
Almost 124,000 migrants have arrived on Italy's shores so far this year, up from 65,500 in the same period last year.
The numbers have yet to pass those of 2016, however, when more than 181,000 arrived during a surge in irregular migration into Europe, many of them Syrians escaping war.
The local reception centre, built to house fewer than 400 people, was overwhelmed with men, women and children forced to sleep outside on makeshift plastic cots, many wrapped in metallic emergency blankets.
Tensions broke out on Wednesday as food was being distributed by the Italian Red Cross, which runs the facility, causing police to intervene.
Some young men later left the overcrowded centre and went into Lampedusa's historic town centre -- where an AFP photographer found some of them buying ice-cream in a gelateria.
Several said they were hungry. Few had any money, and some restaurants turned them away. But other establishments offered food for free, or residents and tourists paid for them.
Located just 90 miles (around 145 kilometres) off the coast of Tunisia, Lampedusa is one of the first points of call for migrants crossing the Mediterranean.
Days of fine weather has seen a surge in arrivals in recent days, with more than 5,000 people arriving in Italy on Tuesday alone, according to interior ministry figures.
Most are picked up at sea from rickety boats by the coastguard, which brings them to Lampedusa port.
But many do not make it that far. More than 2,000 people have died this year crossing between North Africa and Italy and Malta, according to the UN migration agency.
The latest victim was a five-month-old baby, who reportedly fell into the water early Wednesday as part of a group being brought to shore.
Critical situation
For years, Lampedusa's so-called migrant "hotspot" has struggled to cope with the numbers arriving, with humanitarian organisations reporting a lack of water, food and medical care.
The Italian Red Cross took over in June promising to offer a more "dignified" welcome, but admitted this week it was having difficulty with the surge in arrivals.
It reported more than 7,000 people at the hotspot on Wednesday evening, a figure "causing management problems, even if caused by a small number of people".
Some 5,000 people were due to be transferred by the end of Thursday to Sicily, where there are larger processing facilities.
"The situation is certainly complex and gradually, we are trying to return to normality," Francesca Basile, head of migration for the Italian Red Cross, said on Thursday morning.
She said that "despite the critical situation, we still tried to distribute cots to people to prevent them sleeping out in the open".
"We provided everyone with food and distributed dinner last night and today too everyone will receive what they need."
Italy's hard-right government allocated 45 million euros ($48 million) to Lampedusa earlier this month to help the island better manage the migrant situation.
But Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, elected one year ago on a pledge to end mass migration, is calling for European Union help.
Almost 124,000 migrants have arrived on Italy's shores so far this year, up from 65,500 in the same period last year.
The numbers have yet to pass those of 2016, however, when more than 181,000 arrived during a surge in irregular migration into Europe, many of them Syrians escaping war.
Around 7,000 migrants arrive on Italy's Lampedusa island in past two days
The small Italian island of Lampedusa is being overwhelmed by the numbers of migrants arriving on its shores after thousands of people landed from North Africa on boats over the past two days, its mayor said on Thursday.
Migrants queue in front of the Sicilian island of Lampedusa's migrant reception centre, Italy on September 14, 2023. © Valeria Ferraro, AP
Migrants queue in front of the Sicilian island of Lampedusa's migrant reception centre, Italy on September 14, 2023. © Valeria Ferraro, APBy: NEWS WIRES
Issued on: 14/09/2023 -
Lampedusa sits in the Mediterranean between Tunisia, Malta and the larger Italian island of Sicily and is a first port of call for many migrants seeking to reach the European Union.
"In the past 48 hours, around 7,000 people have arrived in Lampedusa, which has always welcomed them with open arms," mayor Filippo Mannino told Italy's RTL 102.5 radio.
"However, we have now reached a point of no return and the island is in crisis," he said.
"Europe and the Italian state must step in immediately with a rapid support operation and swift transfer of people."
The island normally has a population of just over 6,000.
Some migrants on the island placed towels over their heads to shield themselves from the late summer sun as they waited to be processed by the Italian authorities.
Migrants wait near the port to be transferred to the mainland, on the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, Italy on September 14, 2023. © Yara Nardi, Reuters
Footage from earlier in the week showed queues of flimsy boats, full of migrants, waiting to dock at Lampedusa's port.
The island's reception centre has an official capacity of around 400.
Hundreds of migrants were transferred to Porto Empedocle in Sicily on an overnight ferry where they were greeted by volunteers handing out food.
The arrivals are a headache for Giorgia Meloni's right-wing government which took power last October with a promise to crack down on immigration.
Footage from earlier in the week showed queues of flimsy boats, full of migrants, waiting to dock at Lampedusa's port.
The island's reception centre has an official capacity of around 400.
Hundreds of migrants were transferred to Porto Empedocle in Sicily on an overnight ferry where they were greeted by volunteers handing out food.
The arrivals are a headache for Giorgia Meloni's right-wing government which took power last October with a promise to crack down on immigration.
03:42© France 24
Meloni has sought to improve ties with Tunisia, from where most of the boats are now leaving, and in July Tunis and the European Union signed a pact aimed at stemming migrant flows.
An Italian foreign ministry spokesman had no immediate comment when asked why the deal, which pledged 1 billion euros ($1.07 billion) of EU money to help Tunisia's battered economy, was failing to produce results on migration.
Since the start of the year, almost 124,000 sea migrants have landed on Italian shores, almost double the number recorded in the same period in 2022.
The German government said on Wednesday it had suspended an agreement with Italy to voluntarily take in refugees, accusing Rome of failing to honour its side of the bargain.
(Reuters)
Meloni has sought to improve ties with Tunisia, from where most of the boats are now leaving, and in July Tunis and the European Union signed a pact aimed at stemming migrant flows.
An Italian foreign ministry spokesman had no immediate comment when asked why the deal, which pledged 1 billion euros ($1.07 billion) of EU money to help Tunisia's battered economy, was failing to produce results on migration.
Since the start of the year, almost 124,000 sea migrants have landed on Italian shores, almost double the number recorded in the same period in 2022.
The German government said on Wednesday it had suspended an agreement with Italy to voluntarily take in refugees, accusing Rome of failing to honour its side of the bargain.
(Reuters)
Italy: What is the government's response to the uptick in migrant arrivals and its consequences?
Issued on: 14/09/2023 -
03:51
Italy migrant crisis: Nearly 7,000 migrants arrive in just over 24 hours
Issued on: 14/09/2023 -
03:51© France 24
Video by: Seema GUPTA
A flotilla of flimsy boats, crowded with migrants and launched from Tunisia, overwhelmed a tiny southern Italian island on Wednesday, taxing the coast guard's capability to intercept the smugglers' vessels and testing Premier Giorgia Meloni's pledge to thwart irregular migration. FRANCE 24's correspondent in Rome Seema Gupta tells us more.
Video by: Seema GUPTA
A flotilla of flimsy boats, crowded with migrants and launched from Tunisia, overwhelmed a tiny southern Italian island on Wednesday, taxing the coast guard's capability to intercept the smugglers' vessels and testing Premier Giorgia Meloni's pledge to thwart irregular migration. FRANCE 24's correspondent in Rome Seema Gupta tells us more.
Issued on: 14/09/2023
02:00
Video by: James VASINA
In the space of 24 hours on Wednesday, nearly 7000 migrants arrived on the southern Italian island of Lampedusa. That's about double the number from the same time last year. The recent arrivals have overwhelmed the small island. They are also testing the promise made by Italy's far-right prime minister Giorgia Meloni to curb illegal immigration. FRANCE 24's James Vasina has the story.
Europe migration: Why are so many migrants arriving in Lampedusa at once?
Issued on: 14/09/2023
03:42
02:00
Video by: James VASINA
In the space of 24 hours on Wednesday, nearly 7000 migrants arrived on the southern Italian island of Lampedusa. That's about double the number from the same time last year. The recent arrivals have overwhelmed the small island. They are also testing the promise made by Italy's far-right prime minister Giorgia Meloni to curb illegal immigration. FRANCE 24's James Vasina has the story.
Issued on: 14/09/2023
03:42
© France 24
Video by :Philip TURLE
The small Italian island of Lampedusa is being overwhelmed by the numbers of migrants arriving on its shores after thousands of people landed from North Africa on boats over the past two days, its mayor said on Thursday. FRANCE 24's International Affairs Editor Philip Turle tells us more.
Video by :Philip TURLE
The small Italian island of Lampedusa is being overwhelmed by the numbers of migrants arriving on its shores after thousands of people landed from North Africa on boats over the past two days, its mayor said on Thursday. FRANCE 24's International Affairs Editor Philip Turle tells us more.
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