According to the EU border control agency Frontex, people smugglers from Tunisia are increasingly using cheap tin boats to bring more migrants across the Mediterranean: “These tin boats can be welded together in 24 hours. They are not really seaworthy. A little swell – and they will go under,” Frontex boss Hans Leijtens warned.
According to the Frontex boss, the new strategy is very profitable for the human trafficking gangs. “Because the boats are so cheap, they can offer lower prices.” Instead of paying 1,500 to 2,000 euros for the crossing on a larger ship, the migrants paid 500 euros for the riskier crossing on a tin boat.
The situation in the Mediterranean is coming to a head again
According to the Frontex boss, this new strategy of the smuggling gangs could be responsible for the huge increase in the number of irregular border crossings across the Central Mediterranean. In the period from January to April, Frontex recorded 42,165 such cases on this route – from Libya and Tunisia to Italy and Malta. That was almost three times as much as in the same period last year.
According to Leitjens, the departures from Tunisia have skyrocketed. This is a tenfold increase compared to the first four months of 2022. Leijtens expects the migration flow via Tunisia to increase in the coming months. “This is going to be a very hot summer.”
Italy arrested 29 people for smuggling from Turkey
Meanwhile, Italian police recently arrested 29 people for smuggling. They are accused of being part of a criminal group that brought migrants to Italy by boat from Turkey and Greece. Those arrested are said to have also helped migrants reach Central and Northern European countries.
Police said the migrants – mainly from Asia and the Middle East – had to pay between €7,000 and €15,000 for the journey. Smugglers made extensive use of sailboats to evade police checks at sea. The smugglers were mainly Ukrainians or people from countries of the former Soviet Union, the police statement said.
Italy: the number of arrivals increased rapidly
In Italy, the number of arrivals of migrants via the Mediterranean Sea has increased sharply in recent months. Since the beginning of the year, more than 45,000 migrants have arrived in Italy after perilous sea journeys across the Mediterranean, significantly more than last year, when around 12,000 migrants were counted in the same period. More and more boats are also reaching the Italian coasts via the eastern Mediterranean route. At least 94 people were killed in a shipwreck off the southern region of Calabria in February. The ship had left Izmir in Turkey.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
