Italy Sees Fresh Tunisian Migrants, Vows to 'Block' Them

Immigrants wait to board a ferry on the island of Lampedusa, Italy. Photo by EPA/BGNES

A massive flood of migrants from troubled Tunisia is continuing Sunday after an initial strong wave in the final days of the week.

Some 1000 persons have debarked on the small Italian island of Lampedusa, making the total number of refugees over the last 5 days to some 5000.

Italian authorities have organized the transfer of migrants to other parts of the country, but Lampedusa is still crowded with numbers it cannot handle.

Saturday the Italian government had declared a status of "humanitarian emergency" over the unexpected influx of people, coming after weeks of street protests in Tunisia, which resulted in the ousting of President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali.

Italy has also requested an emergency meeting of the Internal Affairs Council of the EU.

Foreign affairs minister Franco Frattini recommended that Italy sends ships to patrol Tunisian waters to prevent illegal crossing, much as Italy did with respect to Albania during the 1990s.

Minister of interior Roberto Maroni stated he will insist from Tunisian authorities to put a firm control and block the outflow of people from theiry country.

Refugees on their part have complained of a strong sense of insecurity about economic prospects and personal security in their country after weeks of unrest.

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