The Italian coast guard has found a newborn baby dead on a boat during a rescue operation near Lampedusa.
The Italian coast guard has found a newborn baby dead on a boat carrying people to Lampedusa, news agency ANSA reported, as dozens of the island’s citizens protested against the recent surge in arrivals.
Nearly 126,000 migrants and refugees have arrived in Italy this year, almost double the number on the same date in 2022.
Lampedusa has seen thousands of landings this week alone, more than the island’s permanent population, prompting calls for help from local politicians.
The Italian coast guard said the baby, born during the voyage, was found during a rescue operation, ANSA reported.
Earlier this week, a five-month-old baby boy drowned during a rescue operation near Lampedusa after a boat carrying migrants and refugees from North Africa capsized at sea.
![Migrants walk past a member of the Carabinieri outside the hotspot, on the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, Italy](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/2023-09-16T105720Z_1428248074_RC2M93APIIXR_RTRMADP_3_EUROPE-MIGRANTS-ITALY-LAMPEDUSA-1694878296.jpg?w=770&resize=770%2C513)
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will visit the island on Sunday at the invitation of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, an EU official said.
Meloni has urged the EU to take action to ease the pressure after thousands of people were landed by boat in Lampedusa, just 90 miles (145 kilometers) off the coast of Tunisia, for three days this week.
The increase in arrivals has revived the debate over how Europe shares responsibility for asylum seekers.
“President von der Leyen will travel to Lampedusa tomorrow at the invitation of Italian Prime Minister Meloni,” European Commission spokesman Eric Mamer said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The interior ministers of France, Germany and Italy and some EU representatives discussed migrant issues during a telephone meeting on Saturday, French Minister Gerald Darmanin said in a message on X.
Due to its proximity to the Tunisian coastal city of Sfax, Lampedusa has for years been one of the main destinations for people from North Africa wanting to reach European shores. But this week the migration center, built to house fewer than 400 people, was overwhelmed.
Germany has decided to continue taking migrants and refugees arriving in Italy, its interior minister said late Friday, two days after it announced the suspension of a voluntary agreement with Rome to receive new arrivals.
Protests against camps
Dozens of Lampedusa residents held protests on Saturday against a plan to build a new tent camp for people arriving by boats.
“I have two children at home. I have not dealt with this subject in recent years. But now I have an instinct of protection for my children, because I don’t know what will happen to Lampedusa in the future,” said one of the demonstrators.
‘Lampedusa says stop! We don’t want tent camps. This message is for Europe and for the Italian government. The people of Lampedusa are tired,” said another protester.