Italy declares state of emergency to address influx of migrant boats

The Italian government has declared a six-month state of emergency in response to an increase in the number of migrants crossing the Mediterranean from North Africa. The move will release €5m in funds and comes as 3,000 migrants arrived in just three days, with many landing on the Italian island of Lampedusa.

Since Friday, the coastguard has rescued around 2,000 people, but 400 people on a fishing boat are still awaiting assistance. Despite attempts by Italy’s right-wing coalition government to tackle irregular migration, migrant arrivals have surged compared to the same period last year.

Over the weekend, at least four people died and 20 more were missing after two migrant boats sank off Tunisia. German aid group ResQship rescued 22 survivors and took them to Lampedusa.

Tunisia has recently become the largest departure point for migrant boats, leading to a series of incidents off the coast, including a disaster on Saturday in which at least four people died. Lampedusa, an Italian island, is located 185km away from the Tunisian port of Sfax. Sea and Civil Protection Minister Nello Musumeci has reported a 300% increase in migrant flows, calling it an “absolute emergency” that puts Italy’s infrastructure at risk.

However, the minister stressed that the state of emergency alone would not solve the problem and that responsible intervention by the European Union was required.

The extra funding released by the Italian government will reportedly allow officials to speed up reception procedures and the repatriation of those who are not allowed to remain in Italy. It is unclear how the measure will address the rising numbers of migrants crossing the Mediterranean.

The Italian coastguard is escorting two boats in the Ionian Sea off Sicily, with one boat carrying around 400 people believed to have set out from Tobruk in Libya. The rescue mission is being hampered by difficult sea conditions, and an unofficial hotline for migrants called Alarm Phone reported that the boat was experiencing medical emergencies, water filling the vessel, and no fuel left.

The situation was described as dramatic. A second boat carrying around 800 people is also under coastguard escort, with no information about where it set out from. The boat was found adrift in Maltese waters, and an urgent alarm was raised with the authorities of Italy, Greece, and Malta.

German non-governmental organisation Sea-Watch International reported that two merchant vessels near the boat had been ordered not to help with rescue efforts by Malta while the boat was in Maltese waters.

According to monitoring group IOM Missing Migrants Project, over 26,000 people have died or gone missing at sea in the Central Mediterranean since 2014. The Armed Forces of Malta stated that “no rescue was requested by the people on board”.

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