A Grimaldi ferry chartered by the Chinese government this morning brought 2,216 Chinese workers to Malta from Libya.

The Roma also carried 9 Maltese, 20 Croatians, two Italians and four Vietnamese as well as two Bulgarians.

One of the Maltese workers, George Camilleri, said he had witnessed fierce fighting in the streets as well as reckless shooting by pro-Gaddafi forces.

"It was very scary" he said.

Getting out was not easy, he added, and he could not leave before also helping out his Filipino colleagues.

Walter Montebello said he did not see any fighting in the area where he worked, but he had seen tanks on the road and celebrations by the people after the Gaddafi forces were defeated.

He took spoke on the difficulty to make it to the harbour.

Foreign Minister Tonio Borg went on board the ship soon after it arrived and thanked the Chinese authorities for ferrying the nine Maltese.

He said the ministry would continue to work hard until every single Maltese who wished to leave Libya was able to do so.The work, he acknowledged, was difficult, particularly with regard to Maltese still in the desert. He also regretted that a Maltese man in Benghazi just missed this Chinese ferry, having arrived at the harbour too late.

Parliamentary Secretary Mario Galea joined the paramedics in helping those who needed medical attention on the ship.

Another Chinese-chartered vessel with a capacity of 2,000 left for Libya on Thursday and two left yesterday. There were chartered from Italy and Malta.

The Chinese are expected to stay on their ships in harbour until they are flown out from Malta. Several aircraft chartered from China Eastern Airlines are due to arrive in Malta today to take some 500 passengers. More will arrive tomorrow.

Meanwhile a Virtu Ferries catamaran this morning returned to Tripoli to pick up more passengers. The catamaran Maria Dolores arrived in Malta on its first evacuation trip yesterday, bringing hundreds of Americans. The catamaran San Gwann is also due to return to Tripoli.

British frigate HMS Cumberland is also due to head back to Tripoli. It was loading supplies at Grand Harbour this morning after disembarking some 250 passengers.

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