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Rome, Jul 20 (Prensa Latina) Italian coastal authorities today announced the arrival at the port of Palermo, in the north of the island of Sicily, hundreds of immigrants rescued as part of operation Mare Nostrum.
According to the newspaper La Repubblica, the civil defense personnel and the Red Cross expect the arrival of undocumented immigrants to provide them with the required care.
Some of the people rescued will be given shelter in centers of the humanitarian organization Caritas Internationalis, financed by the Catholic Church.
Local media reported that, in the last hours, rescue teams from Italy and Malta rescued more than 800 immigrants found in flimsy boats in the Mediterranean Sea.
The day before, authorities of this country reported the discovery of 18 bodies in a barge from Libya with about 600 people onboard, detected south of the island of Lampedusa.
According to official reports, the bodies were found in the hold of the boat and the deaths were caused by inhalation of carbon monoxide from the engine.
The Italian government has repeatedly requested the assistance of the European Union to prevent tragedies of the kind, but the community block continues without implementing effective measures.
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