Enlarge image
A boat with 325 refugees off Lampedusa (on Sunday)
Photo: ANSA / EPA
The sea route between North Africa and Italy is considered to be one of the most dangerous routes for refugees.
Nevertheless, more than 1,400 people seeking protection reached the coast of the Italian island of Lampedusa by boat over the weekend.
Almost 400 people of different nationalities were on board a ship, including 24 women and children, as Italian news agencies reported on Sunday.
There were 325 people on board another ship, while hundreds of other refugees reached the island on other, smaller boats.
Meanwhile, aid organizations warned that more refugees would have to be rescued from Malta.
The party leader of the right-wing Lega, Matteo Salvini, called for a meeting with Prime Minister Mario Draghi.
"With millions of Italians in trouble, we cannot think of thousands of illegal immigrants," said Salvini.
The former interior minister is currently standing trial in Sicily for having refused entry to a port for days in the summer of 2019 for the Italian coast guard ship "Gregoretti" with 116 refugees on board.
He is accused of abuse of office and deprivation of liberty.
The aid organization Alarm Phone has meanwhile requested help for five boats with more than 400 refugees in Maltese waters.
"The situation on board is critical," said the organization.
"Rescue is needed now!"
German rescue ship arrested
Meanwhile, according to media reports, the Sicilian judicial authorities again arrested a German rescue ship from the aid organization Sea-Watch.
When the "Sea-Watch 4" was checked, too many life jackets were found on board.
The ship's sewage system was not designed for such a large number of rescued people, the authority said.
Activists used the inspection as an excuse to arrest the ship.
"We hope that the authorities will not prevent us from leaving the central Mediterranean with absurd accusations that we have already had to get used to," said Sea-Watch Italy.
Another ship of the organization, the "Sea-Watch 3", was confiscated by the Italian coast guard in the Sicilian port of Augusta in March.
In this case, too, the authority relied on violations of safety regulations.
The sea route across the Mediterranean is considered to be one of the most important routes for those seeking protection on their way to Europe.
According to a count by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), almost 530,000 people have reached Italy this way since the beginning of 2015.
From January to the end of April, more than 8,600 people arrived in Italy, with 65 more in Malta.
359 people died, according to the IOM.
mfh / AFP
