An increase in the number of illegal migration attempts to Europe has been reported between the end of the EU’s Operation ‘SOFIA’, which was aimed at rescuing migrants in the Mediterranean, and the beginning of the new Operation ‘IRINI’, which aims to enforce the UN arms embargo on Libya.
This increase has led Italian parliamentarians to submit proposals to the EU to reform its asylum system.
This includes widening the scope of Operation ‘IRINI’ mission to stop the flow of migrants by imposing a naval blockade on Libya.
MP’s from Italy’s ‘Lega Nord’ have claimed that there has been a 400% increase in the number of migrants arriving to Italy in 2020, in comparison to the same period in 2019.
According to the MP’s this increase raises concerns regarding the spread of COVID-19 across the Mediterranean.