In one day, thousands of illegal immigrants arrived on the Italian island.
Another huge wave of illegal immigration in Lampedusa must be dealt with. Thousands of people arrived on the Italian island in one day on small boats.
They are asking for asylum and to be able to continue traveling to Nordic countries. There are only a few hundred beds available at the local shelter.
“On the island of Lampedusa, there are about 6,000 people in the reception area, arriving on 120 boats in the last 24 hours. The situation is complex and the Italian Red Cross continues to ensure – albeit at the cost of huge efforts – that : “Providing basic services to the people we help.”
The local parish priest, Carmelo Rizzo, compared the situation to an apocalyptic disaster, and said the health and hygiene situation was also tragic. Among other things, there are also problems with waste removal due to too many people.
The authorities are using all means to transport the migrants: 700 people were transported to Porto Empedocle in Sicily, from there 250 people were transported to Lombardy and 185 people to Veneto.
More than 120,000 migrants have arrived in Italy by sea since the beginning of the year, including 11,000 unaccompanied minors, according to Interior Ministry data. In April, the government declared a state of emergency for 6 months to deal with this flood.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for European unity to deal with the migrant crisis.
