First migrants land in almost a year

A group of 28 migrants, the first in almost a year, were brought ashore by an Armed Forces of Malta patrol boat in the early hours yesterday after the dinghy they were on started taking in water.

The migrants, 22 men, five women and one baby, formed part of a larger group who were on board the same boat in international waters to the south east of Malta. Another 27 migrants were taken aboard a Libyan rescue vessel that was also dispatched to the area.

The mother and the baby were taken to Mater Dei Hospital for treatment upon arrival.

This was the first landing of illegal immigrants since July last year when two boats made landfall in Marsascala.

The immigration flow was stemmed after Italy and Libya reached an agreement in May last year to jointly patrol the Libyan coast. As part of the deal, migrants rescued at sea were automatically sent back to Libya.

In 2009, a total of 1,475 migrants arrived in Malta on 17 boats, according to data provided by the National Statistics Office. After a big influx in the first two months of last year, by the end of 2009 the number of migrant arrivals had dropped by almost 80 per cent, or 1,300, when compared to the landings in 2008.

The AFM said its rescue and coordination centre was alerted on Saturday morning that a boat containing illegal immigrants was on the high seas and taking in water. An aircraft and a patrol craft were immediately sent out to sea to locate the boat in distress while the rescue centre got in touch with the migrants onboard the boat to assess their condition. Libya also sent a rescue vessel to the area.

The army gave no details as to how the division of migrants between the Maltese and Libyan army boats was handled.