650 migrants from Libya reach Italy by boat; 190 others rescued
About 650 migrants reached the Italian coast in a fishing boat, the latest in increasing attempts to reach the country.
The boat which was about 30 metres long and overloaded, arrived in the southern town of Roccella Ionica, the Italian news agency ANSA reported on Monday.
The report said the boat departed from Libya and its passengers had been travelling for five day.
The passengers were all men who came from Syria, Pakistan, Egypt and Bangladesh, ANSA said.
They reached the Calabrian town unaided, without the involvement of the coast guard or civilian sea rescuers.
Thousands of people arrived in Italy over the weekend. Dozens of others died in the attempt or went missing because their boats capsised.
Meanwhile, the aid organisation Doctors Without Borders brought 190 Mediterranean migrants ashore to the southern Italian city of Bari.
The group’s Geo Barents vessel reached the port on the Adriatic coast previously assigned by Italian authorities late on Sunday afternoon, it said.
The ship picked up people on Friday from an unseaworthy wooden boat, including several unaccompanied minors.
However, many people repeatedly try to reach Lampedusa, Malta, Sicily or the Italian mainland by boats from Tunisia and Libya, crossing the central Mediterranean Sea in a potentially deadly journey.
According to official figures, Italy has already registered more than 21,000 boat migrants since the beginning of January, or more than three times the number of migrants seen in each of the two previous years, when about 6,000 per year arrived.
(dpa/NAN)
We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.
More from Peoples Gazette
Agriculture
FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology
The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices
Politics
Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku
“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”
Economy
Vehicle duty reduction helpful not transformative: Stakeholders
Transport stakeholders say the federal government’s reduction in vehicle import duties has provided modest relief but is yet to transform the transport sector.
Economy
U.S. 50% tariff violates trade agreement, threatens Canada’s sovereignty: Carney
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney condemned the U.S. 50 per cent trade tariff, saying it violates the free trade agreement between Canada, America, and Mexico.
Hot news Home top
Husband pays ‘hired killer’ $1,720 advance to murder his wife, mother-in-law
The aggrieved husband wanted his wife killed because she planned to file for divorce.
Anti-Corruption
Agricultural firm Scoular to pay over $10 million to resolve foreign bribery case
Scoular employees communicated about shipments and bribes. In total, Scoular authorised bribes of more than $400,000 and avoided fees and costs of more than $6.5 million.
States
FRSC mobilises stakeholders against overloading in Sokoto
The zonal commanding officer in charge of Zone 10, Shaba Bariam-Akanbi, inaugurated the three-day exercise on Monday in Sokoto.
Africa
ECOWAS approves appointment of new officials
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has approved new appointments to its strategic statutory positions and specialised institutions for 2026 to 2030.
