Migrant arrivals to Italy down by over thirty percent since January

The ministry said that 111,397 migrants landed in Italy between January and October, compared to 159,427 during the same period last year.

A 78 percent drop was registered in October alone, while arrivals from Libya, a key departure point for migrants attempting the treacherous crossing to Europe, are down 93 percent since January.

The numbers have dropped off significantly since the summer, when Italy moved to rein in NGO rescue ships operating in the Mediterranean by making them sign a new code of conduct, while Libya barred foreign vessels from entering a stretch of sea off its coast. The Libyan coastguard, trained by Italy, has also prevented boats from leaving Tripoli.

The clampdown came after over 12,000 boat migrants landed in Italy in the space of a week in late June.

But the move has also seen a recent spike in the number of migrants departing from Tunisia instead. In early October, eight people died after the boat they were travelling in collided with a navy ship off Tunisia’s coast.

More than 600,000 people from Africa, Asia and the Middle East have arrived in Italy since 2014, many of them by sea from Libya.

European News

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