(Adds PN's, PL's condolences)

France, which had shown so much sympathy with refugees in Malta, should be proud that one of its citizens was saved by a refugee, the Emigrants Commission said today.

Ashih Tekleab Haile drowned after saving a young Frenchman in rough seas in Paradise Bay yesterday afternoon.

The Emigrants' Commission offered its condolences to his family. 

The 32-year-old was married to Selemawit Hagus Belay. The couple met and married in Sudan in 2006 and arrived in Malta by boat in October 2009.

Funeral details will be announced later.

In a statement issued this afternoon, the Nationalist Party also expressed its condolences saying that although this young man had died he would continue living in the people's memory.

The Labour Party said the country should honour Mr Haile with a posthumous National Order of Merit.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.