TUNIS: Tunisian President Kais Saied has called on the International Organization for Migration to accelerate efforts in conducting voluntary returns for irregular migrants to their home countries.
In a statement posted on Facebook late Tuesday, the presidency said that “only 1,544 migrants have been repatriated” since the start of the year.
It said the figure “could have been much higher if greater efforts had been made to put a final end to this phenomenon.”
Tunisia has in recent years become a key departure point in North Africa for migrants making the perilous Mediterranean Sea crossing in hopes of reaching Europe.
Each year, tens of thousands of mainly sub-Saharan African migrants attempt the crossing.
In some areas, Tunisia’s coastline lies less than 150 kilometers (90 miles) from the Italian island of Lampedusa, often their first stop.
However, with mounting European Union efforts to curb migrant arrivals, many migrants find themselves stranded in Tunisia.
The IOM offers free flights to migrants volunteering for return and provides reintegration assistance in their home countries.
Tunisian authorities said 7,250 migrants had been repatriated through the program last year.
So far this year, the IOM says 343 people have died or gone missing attempting the Mediterranean crossing. Last year, 2,476 migrants died or went missing.
Earlier this month, Tunisia’s national guard rescued 612 migrants and recovered 18 bodies off the country’s coast.
About 8,743 migrants have arrived in Italy so far this year, a slight increase over the same period last year, according to Italy’s interior ministry.
Tunisian president urges increased migrant returns
https://arab.news/zajdr
Tunisian president urges increased migrant returns
- The presidency said that “only 1,544 migrants have been repatriated” since the start of the year
- The figure “could have been much higher if greater efforts had been made to put a final end to this phenomenon“
Israel military says Iran fires new wave of missiles at country
- Israeli broadcaster Channel 12 reported several injuries from the Iranian strikes near Tel Aviv
JERUSALEM: Israel’s military said Wednesday that it detected missiles heading toward the country from Iran and had activated air defenses, as it pressed a “wave” of strikes against Iran and Lebanon.
“A short while ago, the IDF identified missiles launched from Iran toward the territory of the State of Israel. Defensive systems are operating to intercept the threat,” the military said on its official Telegram account.
AFP journalists heard air raid sirens sounding in Jerusalem and the sound of explosions in the distance.
A short time later, Israel’s military said it was permitted to leave shelters.
Israel’s Magen David Adom emergency services reported no immediate injuries following the missile fire, but said its teams were treating “a small number of people who were injured on their way to protected areas.”
Israeli broadcaster Channel 12 reported several injuries from the Iranian strikes near Tel Aviv.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they targeted a satellite communications center in Haifa, along with military bases in Israel, and US targets elsewhere in the Middle East including Iraqi Kurdistan and the US Fifth Fleet naval base in Bahrain.
“We will continue our sustained attacks with purpose and power, and in this war, we contemplate nothing but the enemy’s complete surrender,” the Guards said on their website Sepah News.
