A 20-year-old Palermo resident from Senegal was beaten over the weekend in the Italian city, sparking outcry both in the Sicilian capital and across the country due to the racial slurs shouted by his attackers. A group of adolescents allegedly approached him, punched him in the face and yelled "dirty nigger, get out of here."
The mayor of the Sicilian city of Palermo, Leoluca Orlando, on Monday granted honorary citizenship to the crews of three boats involved in rescuing human lives in the Mediterranean Sea.
The Spanish rescue organization Proactiva Open Arms rescued 365 migrants in the Central Mediterranean in several operations last week. After receiving permission to disembark, 363 people stepped ashore in the Italian town of Pozzallo on Sunday. Two migrants had been evacuated earlier for medical reasons.
In the southern Italian city of Palermo, a project teams up 50 young migrants and refugees with local mentors. The goal: To help the youths successfully adjust to life in Italy and transition into adulthood.
With a foreign-born population of 3.4%, Catania is the city in Sicily with the highest number of immigrants. The figure has risen by 4.4% since last year.
An Italian court has ruled that simply piloting a boat is not sufficient cause to be convicted as a human trafficker. The ruling came in the case of seven defendants who were acquitted in a trial in which they were accused of favoring illegal immigration.
Authorities in Italy are concerned over so-called "phantom" migrant landings, which have become a daily occurrence on the coasts of Sicily, Sardinia, and Calabria.
Italian authorities on Monday seized the German rescue boat Eleonore. The rescue boat had been stranded at sea for a week with over 100 migrants aboard. Meanwhile, 31 migrants aboard the rescue ship Mare Jonio were also allowed to disembark on Lampedusa.
The Italian Interior Ministry said the European Commission is planning to distribute the 80 migrants rescued by NGO rescue vessel Open Arms. The migrants, currently on the islands of Sicily and Lampedusa, will be received by EU countries that have expressed willingness to take them in. Meanwhile, an Italian polician said the situation on Lampedusa is becoming increasingly unsustainable.
Last week, the Sicilian motorized fishing boat Accursio Giarratano put its fishing activities on hold to rescue a dinghy overloaded with migrants and in distress at sea. Gaspare Giarratano, the owner of the boat, said that he rescued the migrants as a way of paying homage to his dead son.
The Italian authorities have arrested four Italians and four Tunisians on charges of aiding and abetting clandestine immigration and cigarette smuggling. The group stands accused of organizing' ghost trips' between Tunisia and Sicily.
Italian authorities have arrested 10 suspects accused of forging and illegally providing fake residency permits to foreigners in Italy.