A group of 95 refugees are leaving Malta to start a new life in France on Monday on a chartered flight to Paris.

They will be accompanied by the French ambassador and on arrival will be given a red carpet welcome by the French Foreign Minister.

The refugees leaving Malta include 41-year-old Somali Abderahman whose considers his departure from Malta to be bitter sweet.

“This has been my second home. I have been here for six years and I would like to return on a visit once I have settled into my new life in France,” he said.

This is the second batch of 95 refugees France is taking from Malta.

When it took its first refugees, it had said it would only take more if other countries followed suit. And Germany promised to take another 100 refugees, an embassy spokesman told timesofmalta.com.

French ambassador Daniel Rondeau told the refugees during a reception at his residence in Zebbug this morning that:

“Today a new life starts for you. It’s an honour and a joy to be the messenger of this good news. We are being faithful to our ideal of fraternity. Malta welcomed and protected you and France welcomes you because it wants to show solidarity with Malta.”

During their first six months, the immigrants will receive intensive lessons in French and they will be put in job placements.

Home Affairs Minister Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici thanked France and the EU.

This, he said, was described as burden sharing, but he liked to think of it as an act of solidarity.