ROMA (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Today the Minister of the Interior Matteo Piantedosi met the Vice-President of the European Commission Margaritis Schinas. “The Migration and Asylum Pact approved last June 8 in Luxembourg,” said the Minister, “represents an important starting point and the ongoing trilogue between the European Parliament, the European Council and the European Commission that will complete the implementation of the important legal framework”. The meeting was also “an opportunity to take stock of the new initiatives on the management of the migratory flows funded by the European Commission in collaboration with IOM.” At the center of the cordial meeting, it was also announced the partnership policies of the European Commission with the Northern African countries. “Too many men, women and children have lost their lives at sea, the latest tragedy yesterday, therefore with the support of European funds we must secure regular flows of migration and prevent the migrants ending up in the hands of traffickers”, concluded the minister. (ITALPRESS).

– photo Viminale –
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – A Libyan and a Hungarian have been charged with attempted murder in connection with a knife attack on two Sicilian men over a drug deal that went wrong. The attack happened last Tuesday evening inside an apartment in Triq is-Sikka, Marsaskala, leaving two Sicilian men, aged 52 and 37, grievously wounded, requiring surgery.
According to the prosecuting officials, the Sicilian victims were residing in the apartment where the attack took place. According to local reports, the argument started between the four men while they were negotiating the sale of half a kilogramme of cocaine.
Foto DOI.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (ITALPRESS/MNA) – European Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson confirmed that Dubai in the United Arab Emirates and Alexandria in Egypt served as transit points between Dhaka in Bangladesh and Benghazi in Libya for Bangladeshi nationals.
Replying to a parliamentary question by Maltese Labour MEP Cyrus Engerer, she said Brussels was “closely monitoring” the central Mediterranean migration route, including the transfer of Bangladeshi nationals from Libya to Italy.
The issue of chartered flights ferrying immigrants to Benghazi was recently raised by a high-ranking Maltese government delegation in a first meeting with eastern Libyàs supreme commander General Khalifa Haftar.
In its reply the Commission said that talks on migration and mobility between the EU and Bangladesh in March this year established a permanent forum to stop people smuggling. The Commission also noted that on 6 June it proposed new legislative, operational, and diplomatic measures to deal with the increasing illicit use of commercial transport by criminal networks to facilitate irregular migration into the EU. The proposed toolbox includes measures to “suspend or revoke the operating licence of an EU air carrier” if they no longer meet the good repute requirements of transport legislation. Another proposal is to strengthen cooperation and information exchange between the Commission, Frontex, and Eurocontrol to better monitor flights and gather data on emerging routes and patterns of irregular migration.
However, the European Commission is unaware of investigations into criminal groups using Syrian airline Cham Wings for people trafficking into Europe. “There are indications that the routes used to reach Libya from Dhaka (Bangladesh) are direct connections between Dubai and Benghazi or Alexandria and Benghazi… the Commission has no information on investigations concerning illegal activity by criminal groups using specific airlines like Cham Wings and others,” Johansson replied.
A confidential Frontex report singled out Cham Wings as one of the airlines used by the criminal groups to smuggle people between Damascus in Syria and Benghazi in Libya.
Cham Wings is owned by Syrian businessman Issam Shammout. The airline is part of his family business, the Shammout Group, which is active in the automotive, steel, aviation, freight forwarding, construction, and real estate sectors. On 20 July last year, the EU lifted sanctions against Cham Wings, after the company was blacklisted in December 2021 for its alleged role in ferrying migrants seeking to cross illegally into Poland from Belarus that summer. However, a day later the EU placed Shammout on its sanctions list, calling him a “leading business person operating in Syria”. Shammout is contesting the sanctions against him at the European Court of Justice.
Cham Wings, which does not operate to EU countries, remains subject to sanctions imposed by the United States and pressure is building within the EU to follow the US.
-photo Agenzia Fotogramma –
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Italy remains the main market for passengers movement through Malta International Airport for the first six months of the year. This was confirmed by the company who operates the airport. A total of 754,258 passenger movements were registered throughout June. Malta International Airport said the official statistics not only represent a substantial increase of 4.5% over the passenger traffic handled during same month in 2019, but also marks the end of an encouraging quarter for the airport, as June became the third consecutive month during which the 700,000-passenger mark was reached. Traffic through Malta International Airport peaked on 29 June, as 30,419 departing and arriving passengers took advantage of the four-day long weekend that coincided with the end of the academic year for most educational institutions in Malta. The seat capacity surpassed 2019 volumes by 1.8%, standing at 873,580 seats, load factor also showed a marked improvement, rising from 84.1% in June 2019 to 86.3% last month. The airport’s top five markets remained largely consistent with the previous year. Italy retained the top spot of Malta International Airport’s market for June, with a market share of 24.5%, followed by the United Kingdom, Germany, which regained third position, France and Spain. Malta International Airport’s performance in June brought year-to-date traffic up to 3,434,470 passenger movements, exceeding the traffic volumes handled during the first half of 2019 by 5.6%.
(ITALPRESS).
-photo credit Malta International Airport –

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The international Ngo Alarm Phone confirmed that it has established contact with 28 migrants on a boat in distress in the search and reascue area of Malta. The Ngo said that the boat is moving slowly and communication is difficult. Alarm Phone added that the authorities are alerted and confirmed that the merchant vessel Vos Triton is nearby however no rescue arrived yet. Meanwhile, a member of the crew of the Ngo Sea Watch spoke about what it was described as “shocking interception of a distress case by the East Libyan militia vessel Tareq Bin Zeyad last week.” The crew member said that the crew onboard the Libyan vessel made fun of the Seabird crew while witnessing the Libyans executing an illegal pushback of 250 migrants on an overcrowded boat despite the Maltese Armed Forces who were onboard a military aircraft urged the Libyans not to do so. However, the migrants were brought back to Libya, they were robbed of all their personal belongings and imprisoned.
(ITALPRESS).

Foto: Agenzia Fotogramma

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela held official talks with Tunisia’s President Kais Saied and Tunisian Prime Minister Najla Bouden. The enhancement of economic potential between both countries, energy, and immigration were on top of the agenda. Robert Abela stated that renewable energy is the future even for neighbouring countries that are south of Malta. “The theme which we identified the most is that of the renewable energy sector and these talks will continue on a technical level. We hope to come to an agreement, to a Memorandum of Understanding, with which we can have co-operation in the field of renewable energy between Tunisia and Malta”. The Maltese Prime Minister declared that the Mediterranean region also has challenges that need to be addressed holistically. He referred in particular to immigration and emphasized the need for peace and security in the Mediterranean to have stability in Europe. The issue of immigration was also discussed with the Tunisian Prime Minister. Abela added that immigration is a global issue that cannot be addressed by one country or region. He said that in the next few weeks, an international conference on immigration will be held to address human trafficking and other issues. “We identified how important it is to fight against organised crime and human trafficking which profits from human tragedy. This cannot be done by Tunisia or Malta alone. It needs to be a collective effort. I made a vow to be the voice of Tunisia at EU fora as I have been doing for a number of months,” declared the Maltese Prime Minister. Both Prime Ministers agreed on the need for more commercial cooperation between the two countries including the decarbonisation of the maritime sector. The conflict in Sudan, the situations in Syria and the Middle East, and water management, youth and education were also discussed. (ITALPRESS).

Foto: Agenzia Fotogramma

Source: medNews

ROME (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Those who monitor the respect of fundamental rights of every person independently from the situation are showing their concern towards the actions taken by the authorities in Sfax.
Videos spread on social media these days and journalistic reports published by correspondents indicate a wave of xenophobic violence in Sfax and also signal that migrants are facing the risk of being abandoned in the desert.
All in Tunisia, a country with which Italy has agreements in place for forced repatriations. In a 2023 report presented to the Parliament, the National Guarantor of the rights of private individuals for personal freedom “systematically looks carefully on every negotiation for migration and asylum,” reads a note, “and already expressed concern about the possible forced relocation of migrants to transit countries even if not bound to the Geneva Convention”.
The report describes as an obvious concern the possible future repatriations of sub-Saharan citizens in Tunisia and the risk of exposing them to harassment and torture. The note concludes, “while expressing this fear, the National Guarantor is certain that solutions will be found in line with the Constitution and far from the inclination to outsource our responsibilities and protection.

– photo Agenzia Fotogramma –

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Malta, moratorium of two years on the collection of sea urchins A moratorium has been implemented for a duration of two years on the collection of sea urchins. The collection of sea urchins has been declared illegal by the Maltese government, with immediate effect and individuals found in violation of this regulation will face penalties. However, restaurants and fish importers will be required to maintain the necessary documentation to verify the origin of their catches in case of inspections.
The Maltese government confirmed that a legal notice was introduced after a study conducted by the Environment and Resources Authority revealed that sea urchins in Maltese waters are currently facing the risk of extinction. The government said, “this is part of the authorities’ intensified efforts to restore the population of this endangered species.” Sea urchins play a vital role in maintaining the marine ecosystem by ensuring the survival of 18 different fish species and controlling the spread of invasive alien species.
The Department of Aquaculture has initiated a restocking programme, which involves the cultivation of sea urchins and their subsequent release into the sea. Sea urchins will be collected from the ocean to undergo laboratory processes that will ensure their optimal reproductive health. Their growth will be closely monitored, and comprehensive studies will be conducted on their nutrition and DNA.
The government added: “the authorities are optimistic that within the next two years, there will be a sustainable population of sea urchins in Maltese waters”.

– photo Doi –
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The Maltese government will be issuing an international public call for wind turbines and solar panels at sea. This was announced by the Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela during a meeting he had with young people in which he discussed a number of subjects of national importance, including the renewable energy sector and the environment. Robert Abela said that the international call aims to aid Malta to keep diversifying its energy sources for cleaner air and to reach the European Union’s goals on clean energy.
He added that this will be done alongside the second interconnector project and the joint cooperation agreement with Libya on an interconnector supplying renewable energy.
The Maltese Prime Minister stated that next week Parliament will discuss the Act that will establish Exclusive Economic Zones, meaning zones outside territorial waters where Malta will hold jurisdiction. These zones will then be used for the generation of renewable energy. (ITALPRESS).

Foto: Agenzia Fotogramma

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Some 250 migrants are in distress in Maltàs search and rescue area, with the international NGO Alarm Phone is urging European countries to rescue the boat.
In a tweet, the NGO Alarm Phone, which operates a hotline for people crossing the Mediterranean in the hope of safety and a better life in Europe, reported that the migrants left from Libya and has been spotted by a Frontex drone. “They say they saw a Frontex drone above them and fear interception by the Libyan forces. They need rescue to a safe place in Europe!” Alarm Phone said.
According to another NGO, the merchant vessel SAN FELIX was ordered by the Maltese authorities to leave the area. Radio communication between the NGO Sea Watch and the captain of the merchant vessel confirmed this statement, adding that the Maltese authorities are aware of the situation. Sea Watch added, “the migrants are out of fuel and are adrift and alone.”
So far this year, at least 1,728 people have been recorded missing in the central Mediterranean, according to the Missing Migrants Project.

– foto: Agenzia Fotogramma –

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews