Author Archives: admin.01

Migration, tragedy close to the Maltese coast

VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – At least five migrants died and eight were injured when a boat capsized during a rescue operation three and a half miles off Malta. The boat was carrying 34 people from Syria, Eritrea, Ethiopia and Egypt.
An Armed Forces of Malta patrol boat was dispatched to rescue those aboard the boat. During the rescue, the migrants moved to one side of the boat, causing it to capsize. The boat measured 25 feet in length and was powered by two motors. The Armed Forces of Malta was notified of a boat with several migrants aboard, close to fish farms off ?onqor, south of Malta, at around 10.45 am. The Maltese army deployed an airplane to confirm the location.
The Maltese authorities confirmed five migrants lost their lives, including a woman, while eight were hospitalized. Their condition is unknown. Another 21 were taken to the Safi detention centre.
On Friday afternoon, the Armed Forces of Malta were still searching for other survivors or bodies in the sea.
A magisterial inquiry has been ordered and police investigations are ongoing.

– Photo Net News –

(ITALPRESS).


Source: medNews

Israel to Malta’s representative to the UN: “ceasefire is out of question”

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The Israeli leadership took a firm stand with Malta’s permanent representative to the United Nations over the present conflict in Gaza between Israel and the terrorist group of Hamas. During a recent trip to Israel, UN and New York-based Maltese ambassador Vanessa Frazier met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Foreign Minister Israel Katz and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant. The Israel’s leadership made it clear to that a ceasefire in Gaza was “absolutely out of the question”. Frazier was behind a Malta-led UN Security Council resolution in November which called for humanitarian pauses to allow aid into Gaza in the wake of the October 7 terror attacks, which sparked a war which has left more than 30,000 people dead.
Frazier said: “There was a common message… that a ceasefire is absolutely out of the question. They will go to the end, to the elimination of the last Hamas standing”. She added, “hostage release is not conditional to humanitarian pauses because taking hostages is a crime. So, we cannot put in a resolution that it’s something that can be weaponised or negotiated,” she explained.
However, Frazier stressed that “hindering humanitarian aid in a war is also a crime”. (ITALPRESS).

Foto: Agenzia Fotogramma


Source: medNews

Tunisia stopped over 75,000 migrants from reaching Italy, 12 people arrested

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Tunisia in 2023 intercepted more than 75,000 illegal migrants while they were attempting to enter Europe via the Mediterranean Sea route to Italy. This is more than double the number in 2022, during which more than 35,000 undocumented immigrants were arrested while sailing to Italy off Tunisian coasts, said the report, citing Tunisia’s National Guard spokesman Houcemeddine Jbabli. Meanwhile, the Italian police arrested 12 suspected human traffickers for allegedly organising high-speed transfers for at least 73 illegal migrants from Tunisia to Europe. Expert pilots operated the speed boats crossing from Tunisia to Marsala in Sicily between June and September last year. The traffickers transferred relatively small groups of up to 20 people on each of four trips, charging fees of up to 6,000 euros per person. Six Tunisians and six Italians were detained as part of an investigation coordinated by European police body Europol and the Italian anti-mafia police unit. The investigators identified a Tunisian former police officer as the head of the trafficking organisation. Over the past several months, Tunisian security has intensified the crackdown upon waves of illegal immigration destined for the Italian island of Lampedusa, extending relevant operations from the southeastern province of Sfax to other provinces. (ITALPRESS).

Foto: Agenzia Fotogramma


Source: medNews

Maltese company laundered millions, investigations in Europe

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Following more than 100 searches, a European investigation involving authorities from Malta, Italy, France, Germany, Estonia and Latvia concluded how a Maltese financial firm laundered at least €4.5 million in proceeds from criminal activities since the end of 2015.
Eurojust, the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation added, “the total sum of laundered money could amount to tens of millions of euros.”
The operation was against a Russian-Eurasian criminal network and a Maltese-based financial institution allegedly involved in money-laundering services.
Four suspects were detained during an action day supported by Eurojust and Europol. Potential suspects and witnesses were also interviewed in Latvia, Germany, Estonia and Malta. More than 460 police officers were involved in this operation while various bank accounts and properties were seized.
According to Eurojust, the unnamed Maltese financial institution and the organised crime group behind it offered money-laundering services through a network of fake enterprises and individuals who were registered directors, without performing any real business activities. The organised crime group operated mainly from Riga and Berlin.
The Latvian authorities began the investigations in 2021 after they noticed unusual money transfers from Latvia to the Maltese financial institution.
Simultaneously, the German authorities started investigations into suspicious money flows involving the same financial institution.
As a result, Eurojust took an immediate action by setting up a coordination centre of an investigative team between the German and Latvian authorities. This was followed by various coordination meetings and execution of European Investigation Orders in the countries involved. A money laundering expert was sent to Latvia supported by Europol and set up a mobile office at Eurojust’s coordination centre to support the operation.
Wednesday’s operations were carried out by the following authorities: Malta: Financial Crimes Investigations Department and Asset Recovery Bureau of the Malta Police; Italy: Public Prosecutor’s Office Rome; Guardia di Finanza, Financial Police Unit Rome (Nucleo Polizia Economica e Finanziaria di Roma); Latvia: Riga Northern Prosecution Office; Riga Judicial Region Prosecution Office; 1st Unit of the Economic Crime Enforcement Department of the Central Criminal Police Department of the State Police; Germany: Public Prosecutor’s Office Berlin (Staatsanwaltschaft Berlin); State Office of Criminal Investigations Berlin (Landeskriminalamt Berlin); Estonia: Office of the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Estonia and Estonian Police and Border Guard Board; France: Public Prosecutor’s Office and Investigative Judge – Judicial Court of Nice; National Police (DIPN) Alpes-Maritimes Division (Judicial Police Nice; Research and Intervention Brigade; Financial Brigade) – Border Police.

– Foto: agenzia Fotogramma –

(ITALPRESS).


Source: medNews

Malta, Navalny commemorated in front of the Russian embassy

VALLETTA (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Maltese are commemorating the death of Alexei Navalny, Russiàs main opposition leader, with Western leaders continuing to blame Navalny’s death on President Vladimir Putin. Navalny’s recent death in a penal colony above the Arctic Circle has sparked widespread condemnation of his 19-year prison sentence and raised concerns about human rights violations.
Protesters gathered outside the Russian Embassy in San Gwann on Monday evening, in a protest following Navalny’s death. This was the second commemoration in three days, following last Saturday’s commemoration by the Nationalist Party, Maltàs Opposition Party, which laid a commemorative photo of Alexei Navalny in front of the Russian embassy. None of the protests were organized by Russians living in Malta.
Nationalist Party MP and Foreign Affairs Shadow Minister Beppe Fenech Adami, along with PN’s International Secretary Beppe Galea, said that the Nationalist Party was commemorating the death of Navalny. Fenech Adami said Navalny was silenced and it is the world’s duty not to forget him. “Putin’s regime killed Alexei Navalny to silence the opposition. He was killed because he was a voice in favour of democracy, a voice in favour of freedom. He was killed because he spoke the truth. They pursued him until they killed him,” Fenech Adami said.
Yesterday evening, Rule of Law NGO Repubblika held a protest outside the Russian embassy. Repubblika President Robert Aquilina said, “Alexei Navalny did not die, he was killed by the Putin regime. It was a political murder, a horrible assassination.” He commended Navalny’s work in criticizing the widespread corruption under the Putin regime, comparing his death to Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galiziàs assassination.
“We know what Navalny’s mother is going through because we suffered the same fate when they killed a journalist to try and silence her work in uncovering corruption in Malta,” he said. Aquilina also stated that the same as what is happening in Malta, Putin did not silence his critics but fired them up to uncover the truth.
Meanwhile, Maltàs foreign minister Ian Borg has called for an “independent and transparent” investigation to establish the circumstances of Navalny’s death.
-photo Agenzia Fotogramma –
(ITALPRESS).


Source: medNews

Maltàs emissions continue to increase, the highest in the EU

LA VALLETTA (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Malta registered the highest increase in greenhouse gas emissions in the EU for the second quarter in a row. According to Eurostat, between July and September, Maltàs greenhouse gas emissions increased by almost 8%, the same increase registered during the previous quarter.
In real terms, in the third quarter of 2022, Malta pumped out an estimated 645,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas. By the same time last year, this had risen to 695,000 tonnes.
And while Malta emitted 2.3 million tonnes of greenhouse gases in 2022, by the end of September last year Malta had already emitted more than 1.8 million tonnes.
Maltàs emissions are more than double the second-highest increase registered in Cyprus, where emissions rose by almost 3.7%. Other countries to register an increase were Latvia (3.4%) and Slovakia (0.9%).
Maltàs results are very different to the rest of the EU, where emissions decreased in 23 countries. The biggest reductions were seen in Estonia (-30.7%), Bulgaria (-18.6%) and Germany (-12.2%).
In total, greenhouse gases reduced by just over 7% across the bloc compared to the same quarter in 2022.
Across the EU as a whole, around 787 million tonnes of greenhouse gases were emitted in the third quarter of last year, according to Eurostat.
Despite Malta increasing its emissions at a faster rate than any other EU country, according to World Bank data, Malta and Sweden registered the EU’s lowest rate of emissions per capita. That is in large part due to Maltàs lack of heavy industry.
According to Eurostat between July and September, Maltàs economy grew at almost the same rate as its emissions, with GDP rising by just over 7% compared to the same period in 2022. The report notes that Italy maintained its GDP at the same level while decreasing emissions, while 11 countries managed to actually decrease their emissions while growing their economies.
Carbon emissions in Malta have long been associated with the country’s reliance on cars, something which shows no sign of letting up.
Official statistics show there are some 18,000 vehicles for each square kilometre of road in Malta, with the latest figures showing 60 new vehicles being added to the road each day.

– Foto: Agenzia Fotogramma –

(ITALPRESS).


Source: medNews

Malta’s economic growth excels that predicted in 2023

A VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – According to the European Commission, Malta’s economic performance in 2023 exceeded growth expectations than it was initially projected. In 2023, the real GDP growth stood at 6.1%, 2% decrease than it was recorded in the previous year, but higher than the 4% forecasted by the European Commission. The Commission now predicts that Malta’s economy will grow by 4.6% in 2024, mostly driven by exports and private consumption. This will decline marginally to 4.3% in 2025, the Commission believes. The EC attributes Malta’s performance in 2023 to several factors, from its own upward revisions of the economy’s performance at the beginning of the year, to a “high growth” of 2.4% in its third quarter. The report notes construction activity was “weaker” in 2023, as was Malta’s investments in fixed assets.
The European Commission also predicts that inflation rates in Malta will be slightly lower than it had initially predicted, at 2.9% this year and 2.7% in 2025 attributing continuing pressures in food and services prices. By contrast, the report finds that inflation had reached a high of 5.6% in 2023, in line with what it had predicted. However, government intervention kept retail energy prices stable, mitigating some inflationary effects. The forecast comes amid calls from the European Commission to phase out Malta’s energy support measures to address government deficit concerns. Writing on X, Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela said that these results are because “progressive decisions make a real difference in people’s lives”. The report refers to the EU’s economy performance saying it “entered 2024 on a weaker footing than previously expected”, saying that the cost of living crisis and a drop in households’ purchasing power has slowed the bloc’s economic growth. It is predicted that the EU’s economy will grow by 0.9% in 2024, rather than the original forecast of 1.3%.

(ITALPRESS).

Foto: Agenzia Fotogramma


Source: medNews

Malta, farmers present five proposals to the government

LA VALLETTA (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Maltese farmers presented a set of five proposals to the Maltese government at the end of a national protest in Valletta waterfront, close to where the Virtu Ferries catamaran from Sicily docks.
Malcolm Borg of Ghaqda Bdiewa Attivi said, here is where most of the imported food arrives in Malta, while asking, “can we keep depending so much on importation and dismissing local produce?”
Currently, Malta imports approximately 80% of its food requirements, both fresh and frozen.
Presenting the proposals to the government, Borg listed want they are insisting on to protect their livelihood and secure the local produce.
Maltese farmers are requesting that non-EU food products should be blocked from entering Malta if local supply meets demand. The government should negotiate with the EU to get the clearance to do that. They are also asking for more stringent testing of non-EU food products. Malcolm Borg of Ghaqda Bdiewa Attivi argued that importers of non-EU goods are also selling local consumers inferior products. He alleged that Argentinian beef exported to France is then repackaged and sent to Malta after its initial expiry date.
The demonstrators are calling for government subsidies on fertilizers, animal fodder and the costs of local feeds.
Farmers declared that it is “absurd” for a country like Malta with limited agriculture land to consider and encourage land to remain fallow.
Farmers are requesting the Maltese government to block EU laws that can influence local agriculture from being implemented until there is enough proof that impacts will be negligible. Farmers cited laws arising from the European Green Deal or laws to end cage farming for chickens as cases in point.
It was the farmers’ second protest in as many weeks and one of a series of farmers’ protests across European capitals including Rome, Madrid and Athens.
-photo Agenzia Fotogramma-
(ITALPRESS).


Source: medNews

Ghiringhelli “Airline sector recovering, Italy strategic for Emirates”

ROME (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The pandemic “was a situation that created various problems for all airlines, because it was the first time in which the engines were completely shut down – something that has never happened before in the world of air transport – but now almost all carriers have restarted in the best possible way and work is underway to reach pre-covid levels. We are investing in aircraft fleet, in new routes and to provide a series of additional services to all our customers while rethinking the logic of air transport of the future”. This was said by Flavio Ghiringhelli, Country Manager of Emirates Airlines in Italy, interviewed by Claudio Brachino for “Italpress Economy”.
“In 2023, after the pandemic, we had to introduce new staff: already in August we had reached over 20,000 people in the company’s workforce” and “this year we started with a recruitment campaign for 5,000 people who will work as cabin crew”, he added. “We started a campaign to address two particular needs: the first is to strengthen the number of people who collaborate in this department, which is very important in terms of the hospitality we give to our customers. Then we made a multi-million dollar investment, we have a list of over 300 airplanes that will soon arrive and will also be included in the Italian market.”
After Covid, “many people who normally traveled in economy class asked us to have a little more space”, suggesting “that we introduce a new class”, Premium Economy. “We are working on the materials, the design of the seats and the interiors of the aircraft: we are the first airline in the world to offer four different class options for traveling” and, “where we have already making it available, especially on long-haul destinations, we have a very high return of satisfaction from our customers”. On the routes, “we are completely recovering the entire network that we had during the pre-covid, apart from some destinations in China which are not yet available, and on some destinations – in particular Australia – we have increased the number of frequencies, because we realized that not only Australians want to travel, but that the whole world wants to go to Australia.”
Emirates “considers Italy a strategic country, it is the eighth most important market in the world and the third in Europe, so we certainly give particular attention. Today we operate 41 weekly frequencies from Milan, two flights a day to Rome, one daily flight to Venice and six times a week to Bologna”. As regards sustainability, “air transport as an industry is also focusing a lot on sustainability, but if we look at the impact of air transport on the total contribution to the production of Co2 in the air, the percentage of air transport is very low, only 2.9%, compared to other industries. Despite this, we are committed to working hard on sustainable fuels, which allow us to operate safely with extremely limited pollution. We have the possibility of working on aircraft routes and using new generation mobile robots, which actually allow us to consume even less.” For the world of air transport, “technology is an extremely important element because it allows us to make an evolution compared to traditional activities”, for example with “the use of facial recognition systems to speed up activities at the airport” or with the technologies that today allow us to go to the gate even without printing the boarding pass. “We are developing an activity linked to the maintenance of our aircraft, we are training our engineers without the need to be trained in hangars”.

– foto Italpress –
(ITALPRESS).


Source: medNews

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