A state of emergency has been declared on Lampedusa. The island, which normally has 6,600 inhabitants, has doubled its population in recent days. Several thousand refugees and migrants have arrived by sea in less than a week. The people who come are traumatized and exhausted. They need food, a roof over their heads and medical help. That’s what Matthew Saltmarsh, spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, says. – It is urgent to move people from the island, because the resources and capacity here are so limited, said Saltmarsh, according to Reuters. 8,500 migrants and refugees have arrived in Lampedusa in a few days. Photo: ALESSANDRO SERRANO / AFP Ten points Italy’s Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, visited the island on Sunday. With her was EU President Ursula von der Leyen. Meloni asked the EU to take responsibility for resolving the situation. – The only way to deal with the problems seriously is to stop illegal travel, she said. Italy receives a large number of migrants and refugees who want to enter Europe. About 127,000 have arrived in the country so far this year, according to the news agency Ansa. That is roughly twice as many as at the same time last year. Ursula von der Leyen (left) and Giorgia Meloni (right) visited together the reception center for migrants on Lampedusa. Photo: YARA NARDI / Reuters Von der Leyen presented the EU’s ten-point plan. – We will decide who comes to the EU, and under what circumstances, not the people smugglers, said the EU president. Among the measures she put forward is the stepping up of surveillance at sea and from the air, in order to overcome all migrant crossings in the Mediterranean. The EU will also work for faster returns of migrants who are refused asylum. In addition, she wants more legal ways for refugees to get to Europe. – Unregulated immigration is a European challenge that needs a European response, she added. Shipped away The boats that have arrived in Lampedusa come from Tunisia, according to AP. The refugees and migrants have arrived in boats that are barely seaworthy. Since Lampedusa is closer to North Africa than mainland Europe, the island has become a popular target for people smugglers, AP writes. One reason why so many boats have arrived now must be that the weather has been good. Normally, arrangements have been made for Lampedusa to receive 400 refugees at any one time. Now the Italian authorities have started transporting the refugees and migrants to Sicily and the mainland. The ship “Galaxy” is among the ships brought in to transport migrants from Lampedusa to Sicily. Photo: ALESSANDRO SERRANO / AFP Local protesters had turned up during Meloni and von der Leyen’s visit to Lampedusa, according to Reuters. Meloni told the protesters that the Italian government is working to put solutions in place. It includes 500 million euros in aid to Lampedusa. – We are doing our best, said Meloni. Meloni, who has been prime minister for almost a year, went to the polls to gain control over illegal immigrants.
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Italy asks the EU for help to take in thousands of boat refugees – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
