Lampedusa

Lampedusa: Helicopters ferried the injured to Lampedusa, the Italian island that is closer to Africa than the Italian mainland and the destination of choice for most smugglers boats leaving Tunisia or Libya. It was off Lampedusa that a migrant ship from Libya capsized on Oct. 3 with some 500 people aboard. Only 155 survived, according to The Star. The two shipwrecks were the latest grim reminder of the extreme risks that migrants and asylum-seekers often take in an effort to slip into Europe every year by boat. Facing unrest and persecution in Africa and the Middle East, many of the migrants think the escape route to Lampedusa, which is barely 113 kilometres from northern Africa, is worth the risk and VALLETTA, MALTA For the second time this month, a smugglers boat overloaded with migrants capsized in the Strait of Sicily on Friday as it made the perilous crossing from Africa to Europe. At least 27 people drowned, but 221 people were rescued in a joint Italian-Maltese operation, officials said. Fridays capsizing occurred 105 kilometres southeast of Lampedusa, but in waters where Malta has search and rescue responsibilities. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.