According to AFP , the Somali envoy in Tripoli has reported that a migrant boat carrying approximately 50 migrants sank off the coast of Misrata on Wednesday last week. The boat was reportedly carrying about 55 migrants from Somalia. 15 bodies have been recovered.
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Filed under Libya, Mediterranean, News
The Mistral Express, the Moroccan ferry carrying 1800 people evacuated last week from Misurata, Libya, disembarked its passengers on 18 March in Morocco at Port Tanger. Most of the evacuees on board were Moroccan citizens. The ship first attempted to sail from Libya to Italy but was blocked by Italian authorities from landing in Sicily. At the time Italian authorities said they prevented the ship from entering Italian waters due to uncertainty regarding the identities of the passengers and because it was unclear whether the passengers were “genuine evacuees”. After the initial stand-off with Italian authorities, the ship entered the Italian port of Augusta on the night of 16-17 March and then left the port early on 17 March for Port Tanger.
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Filed under Italy, Libya, Mediterranean, News
A large ferry, the Mistral Express, carrying approximately 1800 persons was prevented yesterday from entering Italian waters near Sicily by Italian navy or coast guard boats. The ship apparently left the Libyan port of Misurata and most of its passengers are Moroccan. The ship may have been planning to sail to Morocco and may have tried to divert to Italy for purposes of refueling, but the media reports are unclear. It is also unclear who chartered the ship. Italian authorities confirm that they prevented the ship from entering Italian waters due to uncertainty regarding the identities of the passengers. An Italian government spokesperson reportedly said it was unclear whether the passengers were “genuine evacuees” from Libya. It is also unclear whether the ship then tried to sail to Malta. Some media reports say that Malta refused the ship permission to enter Maltese waters. Maltese authorities are reported as saying that this did not occur but according to media reports Maltese authorities said that they would prevent the ship from landing in Malta if it tried to do so for the same reasons advanced by Italy.
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MIGRANTS AT SEA 