43 Somali migrants rescued

A group of 43 Somali migrants was brought to Malta this morning after having been rescued 88 miles south of Malta late yesterday afternoon.

The migrants had used a satellite phone to alert Rome rescue centre that their dinghy was adrift and that they had lost their outboard engine.

An AFM Islander aircraft confirmed the position of the dinghy and the migrants - 30 men and 13 women, were picked up by patrol boat P-52.

Somalis are the biggest group of migrants in Malta.

A total of 1,266 Somalis arrived in Malta this year up to the end of September, compared to 613 in 2007, 311 in 2006 and 146 in 2005. There were 533 arrivals in 2004.

In all, 3,221 Somalis have arrived in Malta since 2002, of whom 1,666 are still here.