ROME -- There’s been a new shipwreck in the Mediterranean.  The boat, which was carrying over 500 migrants, got into difficulty just off the coast of Libya where two Italian Navy vessels went to the rescue.  At this point reports say that around 500 people have been rescued, whilst seven bodies have also been recovered.  They are currently searching for others who have not yet been found.

 It has been reported that the boat was not in a good condition and that overcrowding on board was the final straw.  The navy ship Bettica, which was carrying out its usual surveillance activities in the Sicilian Channel, discovered them.  Not long afterwards the boat capsized, tossing about 100 of the migrants into the sea, causing them to call in help from another navy ship, Bergamini, which was nearby.

 Last week the UK's House of Lords strongly criticised the “Sophia” operation, to which Admiral Enrico Credendino, the commander of the European fleet who are fighting human trafficking, replied, “On the sea there is only one law, to save those who are in difficulty.  It’s a moral obligation that we will never forget, even if our mission is something else: we must dismantle the business model of these people smugglers.  And to do that in an effective way we need to go to Libya.”

 He continued, “Libya is like Somalia in the heart of the Mediterranean: only the stabilisation of the country can stop the traffickers.  The new government are taking the first steps in the right direction and the revival of the coast guard will be an important sign.  In 14 weeks we can train the first 100 men, in international waters, transforming one of our ships into a school.”

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