On New Year's Eve

278 people arrived on Lampedusa

Symbolic image

(Bild: APA/Associated Press)

Despite low temperatures, the number of migrant arrivals in southern Italy is increasing again. A total of 278 people arrived on Lampedusa on New Year's Eve. Among them were seven people who survived a shipwreck off Lampedusa. One rescued Syrian boy lost his mother.

The people reached the southern Italian island on board four boats that were picked up by Italy's coastguard. The majority of the migrants are Egyptians, Pakistanis, Syrians and Palestinians.

The search for 20 missing people after a shipwreck off Lampedusa continued on Wednesday night. Three children are among those missing. The migrants had sailed from Libya.

A picture of the shipwreck:

Surviving Syrian boy lost his mother
Seven people, including an eight-year-old Syrian boy, were rescued and accommodated in the island's hotspot. The surviving boy, who lost his mother during the sea voyage, was able to contact his father, who lives in Germany. The child is to be brought to Sicily. "I hope that this really is the last refugee tragedy that we have to experience," emphasized the mayor of Lampedusa, Filippo Mannino.

Four arrests after accident off Tunisia
Two Tunisian migrants, including a five-year-old child, died in a shipwreck off the coast of Tunisia this week. 17 people were rescued after the boat they were on sank off the coast of Tunisia. The boat had set off for Italy, as Italian media reported on Tuesday. Four people suspected of smuggling were arrested.

This year, 65,696 migrants arrived in Italy after crossing the Mediterranean, compared to 156,844 in 2023. In 2022, 104,459 migrants had reached Italy, as the Ministry of the Interior in Rome announced on Tuesday.