29 illegal immigrants were brought ashore late on Sunday evening, after they were rescued by the Armed Forces of Malta earlier during the day. The illegal immigrants were spotted around 50 to 70 miles off the Maltese coast. They were taken to the AFM maritime base at Hay Wharf. The group consist of 21 men, five women and three children. According to police preliminary investigations, the illegal immigrants are coming from the African continent.

In turn, Sicilian coast of Gela has witnessed a macabre tragedy involving 12 illegal immigrants originating from Africa. On Sunday morning the bodies of 12 illegal immigrants were found washed ashore on the beach. A number of the victims are believed to have been aged between 15 and 17 years old, while there are also women and children.

The immigrants, believed to be from Eritrea, all stated that initially there were around 160 illegal immigrants on board the vessel they travelled on. They added that they do not know what happened to the remaining missing immigrants. Italian agency Ansa reported that moreover, other corpses were spotted at sea.

Amongst the 160 illegal immigrants, 20 were found along the coast, while 74 were rescued and immediately hospitalised. More than 50 persons are still missing, however they are believed to have reached the shore and managed to disperse.

Ansa also reported that in relation to the case, Italian police have arrested six persons.