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Migrants clinging to tuna pen off Malta, six missing
Jun 15, 2008, 23:32 GMT
Valletta, Malta - Around 84 would-be illegal migrants are expected to land in Malta early on Monday morning, following a weekend of drama in the Mediterranean sea.
A group of African immigrants were saved by the Maltese army after holding on to a tuna pen off Malta on Sunday. The migrants, all Somali, are claiming that six of their party were missing in the rough seas.
As the rescue vessel was making its way back to Malta, it was forced to divert to save another 28 immigrants in distress.
A third group was located closer to Malta by another patrol boat late on Sunday evening.
Though summer has not yet kicked off, the island of 400,000 is already struggling to cope with the hundreds fleeing Africa, amid concerns raised by human rights groups over the length and conditions of detention.
A badly decomposed corpse wearing a life jacket probably an African man, was removed from the sea south of Malta on Saturday, prompting fears of more drownings involving fleeing Africans.
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