This time it is alleged that traffickers, angry at the passengers, deliberately rammed the ship forcing it to capsize.
The USS San Antonio rescued illegal migrants here in 2013. Note that our men have donned protective clothing. bhttp://www.nbcnews.com/news/other/uss-san-antonio-rescues-migrants-mediterranean-sea-near-malta-f8C11409455
About 500 migrants are feared to have drowned after the boat carrying them from Egypt to Malta was apparently rammed and deliberately sunk by people-traffickers, an intergovernmental group has said.
The news – based on the accounts of two Palestinian survivors – emerged on the same day up to 200 more people were feared dead when another boat heading to Europe capsized off Libya.
[….]
Huge numbers of people are attempting to flee from Africa to Europe, with numbers sharply up this year, in part due to the continued violent chaos in Libya and Syria. More than 100,000 people have been rescued since January, the UNHCR, says.
And, then get this! After the Italian Navy rescues a bunch of illegal migrants, the traffickers slip back and re-take their ship to be used again.
Earlier this year a leading Libyan people smuggler, speaking anonymously to the Guardian, explained how he uses a different tactic to ensure the trafficking boat can be used again.
The man said that once the Italian military was en route to the ship he and his crew would decamp to a small rubber inflatable. Once the migrants are removed they return to the smuggling boat and return in it to Libya. [Italy might at least burn the damn ships!—ed]
I’m at the point of saying, Europe deserves what is happening to it—they are so dumb. If they just escorted some of the migrant boats back to Libya and Egypt thus blockading Europe, this whole business would end in a nanosecond. Of course, look who is talking as we similarly don’t close our US borders!
Or, so they would like it to be forbidden! Think about this! The UN High Commissioner for Refugees is telling certain countries (to start with! others will be next!) to allow anyone claiming asylum to simply roam free and get “services.”
Who the hell do they think they are!
And, why countries that want to save themselves from invasion don’t just get out of the UN is beyond me.
One-worlder Volker Turk: Detaining people is not the answer. Let them roam free and give them “services.” http://www.cassese-initiative.org/global-education/summer-schools/faculty/9-global-education/73-turk-bio.html
LOL! One of the countries the UN is telling to release asylum seekers is Mexico—well obviously Mexico is not detaining the tens of thousands of asylum-seeking “children” passing through Mexico to get to the US border.***
And, note that the UN is not (yet) telling the US to stop detaining illegal migrants.
The UN refugee agency yesterday issued a new global strategy aimed at helping countries move away from the detention of asylum seekers, refugees and stateless people worldwide.
Detention of asylum-seekers and refugees has become routine in a number of countries. It has serious lasting effects on individuals and families and the UNHCR said that it is concerned about the growing use of immigration detention, particularly of children.
The new strategy, ‘Beyond Detention’, calls firstly for an end to the detention of children, secondly to ensure that alternatives to detention are available in law and that they are implemented, and thirdly to ensure that conditions of detention – when unavoidable – fully meet international human rights standards.
“Seeking asylum is lawful and the exercise of a fundamental human right,” UNHCR’s Director of International Protection Volker Türk said “The detention of asylum-seekers as a routine response should be avoided. These are people who need protection. We are ready to work with governments on this, particularly to end the practice of detaining asylum-seeking children.” [Who isn’t an asylum seeker these days?—ed]
Türk said that the UNHCR recognised that irregular entry or stay presented many challenges to countries, but he said that detaining people was not the answer. “UNHCR recommends that people seeking asylum be properly received, allowed freedom of movement and access to services in the community.Seeking asylum is not illegal under international law and people have a right to be treated humanely and with dignity.”
UNHCR has identified a number of countries to work with initially to revisit detention practices and to strengthen alternatives to detention, including Malta, Hungary, Indonesia, Lithuania, Malaysia, Mexico, Thailand, UK and Zambia. UNHCR plans to expand this group of countries over the coming five years.
The international Left is busy, busy, busy these days!
Follow our history of poor little Malta as it became a target for illegal aliens especially when the US State Department (egged-on by Malta’s Jesuits) started taking some of their illegal economic migrants to America calling them refugees. One could write a book about the ‘invasion of Europe’ and how Malta became a beach head. See our ‘Invasion of Europe’ series by clicking here.
*** Seeall of our postson the invasion of the US by ‘unaccompanied minors.’ Forgotten in all of the hullabaloo is that legitimate asylum-seekers are, by international law, supposed to ask for asylum in the first safe country in which they arrive. They are not supposed to be shopping for countries of their choice! All of those “vulnerable” kids should have asked for asylum in Mexico!
Longtime readers know that we have been following the slow motion disaster for the Maltese people as their tiny country suffers the proportionately largest brunt of the assault on Europe by illegal migrants crossing the Mediterranean, now largely from Libya, where sources tell us that 800,000 would-be “asylum seekers” are poised to break into Europe.
Before you read on, visit American Thinker right now (hat tip Judy) and read an excellent review of the dark and prophetic novel (written in 1973!) about the future of France (Europe) and ultimately America—The Camp of the Saints— as destitute migrant masses arrive on Europe’s shores (and come across our Southern border!). Then order itfor your summer reading!
So how are we aiding the invasion beyond picking up 282 mostly men and instead of returning them to Libya our war ship drops them off on Malta?
Some of the 282 Africans brought on board the USS Bataan on Friday.
We (Obama) played a key role in the destabilization of Libyathe launch pad for the invasion, and for many years now—starting with George W. Bush—the US State Department has been ‘helping’ by taking some of Malta’s illegal aliens to the US as “refugees” thus adding one more inducement (a ticket to America) for the economic migrants to take the plunge. (See our extensive archiveon ‘Malta.’)
The multipurpose amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD 5) transferred 277 persons in distress to the Armed Forces of Malta offshore patrol vessel P61, and another five persons were medically evacuated to Malta June 7, 2014.
Bataan and USS Elrod (FFG 55) rendered assistance on Friday to persons in distress at sea in the Mediterranean after receiving a report of a sinking small vessel. Bataan provided food, water, medical attention and temporary shelter.
[….]
Bataan launched two Search and Rescue MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopters to investigate. Once on scene, Bataan’s SAR helicopters confirmed a small vessel was sinking. The SAR helicopters then deployed the SAR swimmers to start extracting persons from the water. Elrod deployed their 7-meter rigid hull inflatable boat; Bataan deployed their 11-meter Captain’s Gig and 7-meter RHIB to assist.
282 persons were recovered and brought on board Bataan.
Bataan, with elements of 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, is operating in the US 6th Fleet area of operations to augment US Crisis Response forces in the region.
So what is the mood on Malta? A commenter at the Independentgives us some idea:
The USS Bataan should have taken them to Libya where they left from. Who’s fault is it that they were in distress? Am I supposed to feel sympathy for them? Well hell I don’t. They all know where they can go.
All it would take to stop the insanity is for Western leaders to grow a spine and start taking migrants back to Libya or elsewhere in North Africa, encourage the UN to build appropriate camps and then the ‘caring class’ must figure out how to save Africa (in Africa) because it is obvious the migrating masses will soon sink the lifeboat!
See Roy Beck at NumbersUSA explaining how America, or civilized nations generally, cannot solve the world’s poverty by moving some of the overflow to the West. Beck, states the obvious: “They have to be helped where they live!”
Since we have been talking about the invasion of Europe this morning, here and here, here is one more article that tells us which countries are getting the brunt of it. Per capita Malta is getting the most migrants claiming asylum.
The invasion of Malta! Note the Muslim women in this group.
Poor Malta! Back in the Bush Administration, the US began taking some of Malta’s illegal aliens (don’t ask me why!), but in so doing the State Department broke international refugee law and set a precedent. Legitimate asylum seekers are to apply for asylum in the first safe country they reach, it is not supposed to be a shopping trip for a plane ticket to America. This is a European Union problem, not ours!
As I reported here in a post about Austria (why are we taking refugees from Austria?), we had flown to America 136 supposed refugees from Malta in this fiscal year alone.
Malta is now a magnet for migrants! (We have an extensive archive on Malta, and the US and Catholic Church involvement there, click here to learn more).
Malta last year received, on average, the highest number of asylum-seekers compared to its national population, a report by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) shows.
Malta received 20.2 applicants per 1,000 inhabitants. Sweden ranked second (19.2 applicants per 1,000 inhabitants), followed by Liechtenstein (17.3 applicants per 1,000 inhabitants), Luxembourg (11.9 applicants per 1,000 inhabitants), and Switzerland (11.5 applicants per 1,000 inhabitants).
The refugee agency’s report shows a sharp rise in asylum claims in 44 industrialised countries over the course of last year, driven primarily by the crisis in Syria. [Syria is an excuse, they are coming from throughout Africa and the Middle East!—ed]
The most ‘asylum seekers’ overall are going to Germany, France and Sweden!
With around 109,000 new asylum claims, Germany was the largest recipient of asylum seekers. France received the second highest number in Europe with around 60,000 claims. Sweden was the main destination country in Northern Europe, receiving around 53 000 applications.
The increase in Italy was mainly due to the many boat arrivals during last year. This trend is continuing in 2014 as almost 10,000 people have arrived in Italy since the beginning of January.
Why do we post so much from Europe? First, we have a lot of readers in Europe (we had 100 from Malta alone in the last week), and secondly Europe is ‘ahead’ of the US in the demographic chaos that will determine whether western civilization survives for our children and grandchildren—so pay attention!
What would we do without readers who help us do our work by finding good stories for us? Again, ‘pungentpeppers’ has been busy reading.
Pretty much the same story we’ve been reporting for years except, of course, the pace has increased and the number of foundering boats and passengers seems to be growing exponentially. I guess they didn’t hear about the 300 plus who drowned only a few months ago.
The Italian navy has rescued more than 1,000 migrants in the 24 hours to Friday from boats trying to reach Europe, as an immigration crisis that killed hundreds in the last year showed no signs of easing.
Navy helicopters spotted four overcrowded boats struggling to stay afloat south of Sicily on Thursday and ships were sent to save them, the navy said in a statement.
The 823 men, women and children aboard the four vessels were from countries including Egypt, Pakistan, Iraq and Tunisia.
The navy also rescued 233 migrants from Eritrea, Nigeria, Somalia, Zambia, Mali and Pakistan in a separate operation and took them to a port near Syracuse on Sicily’s eastern coast.
[….]
Over the past two decades, Italy, Greece and the Mediterranean island of Malta have the brunt of the migrant flowsand have urged a coordinated European Union response.
Type ‘Malta’ into our search function and learn about how the Bush Administration, and now the Obama Administration, have helped make Malta a magnet for illegal aliens hoping to get a ticket to America as we have turned hundreds of mostly Somali economic migrants to Malta into legitimate refugees for America.
