The Italian Interior Minister, Luciana Lamorgese, told a Parliamentary committee that the Libyan crisis has increased the number of illegal immigrants traveling to Europe.
During the hearing at the Schengen Parliamentary Committee, Lamorgese stated that an escalation in the conflict has resulted in the displacement of a large number of people. This has had a negative effect on migration numbers, with 9,139 migrants arriving from Libya this year.
Lamorgese claimed that if bad weather and rough seas persisted for several days, the migrants could undergo their COVID-19 quarantine on an Italian ship. They would then be immediately sent to EU states that have agreed to accept 100 of the migrants, with Italy taking in 25.
The ship was initially heading to Marseille in the south of France. French authorities successfully convinced Italy to allow the vessel to dock in the Mediterranean, according to Sea-Eye’s Gorden Isler.
“We hope that the 125 rescued will be allowed to disembark in Sardinia, so they can be adequately cared for there,” Isler tweeted.