The majority of migrants found living in a cow farm in Qormi are not legally allowed to work in Malta, with a majority having entered the country by air through Italy, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said this morning.

On 13 August, an Qormi farm was found to be illegally housing 120 migrants, with the property's owner charging the persons €200 per month, earning roughly €10,000 per month.

The migrants living there told Planning Authority officials that they are in Malta legally, and thus they were told to vacate the property and are now responsible for finding new homes themselves.

Speaking in an interview with One News, Muscat explained that while the migrants were granted status as asylum seekers or given some form of protection in Italy, meaning that they were only able to travel to Malta and not actually seek employment in the country.

"They did not arrive by sea. This is not true. They arrived with bags holding airplane tags from particular areas in Italy. They arrived in Italy, were not able to find work in Italy, so they came to Malta," he said.

"We will now have to work to send these individuals back to Italy," he continued.

Describing the current situation as a 'double-edge sword', Muscat lamented criticism against the PA's decision to conduct the raid and evict the migrants from the premises, with critics arguing that this has effectively left these persons homeless with no viable alternatives in Malta's growing economy.

"The report that was sent to me only showed 16 persons living there. The PA took the necessary steps. Shall we allow people to live in a place where cows are meant to live? If this creates another problem, we will find the solution," Muscat insisted.

Balancing national interest and human dignity key to migration - PM

Migration was the key theme in Muscat's interview, with the PM highlighting the importance of both national interest and human dignity, describing the former as a fundamental concept of the Labour Party and social democracy.

"You cannot choose when to have these beliefs," he said, reiterating that it was crucial to differentiate between asylum seekers and those needing protection, to those who have come to the country for purely economic benefit from countries like "Nigeria, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Ghana, and Togo."

"If the whole area is on fire, you would even get onto a little piece of wood in the sea, and people deserve protection. However, if you are just coming here to work, go through the embassy and the proper channels," he said.

Stressing the importance of legal international obligations and EU cooperation for realistic solutions, Muscat said that it was the country's duty to accept the NGO 'Aquarius's vessel last Wednesday, which was carrying 141 migrants rescued off Libya, explaining that they were allowed to disembark as part of an EU deal which will see them distributed among France, Luxembourg, Germany, Portugal and Spain, with Malta taking none of them. A further half of the group of 114 migrants that were brought to Malta last week after rescue in Maltese waters, would also be shared.

Italy was said to be part of the operation, however, Muscat made no mention of the country in his interview.

With regards to the latest diplomatic standoff between the two Mediterranean neighbours involving the Italian government's calls for its coast guard to disembark some 170 migrants in Malta, the PM was steadfast to refute claims by Italy that it "directed" a migrant vessel in distress towards the country.

Muscat clarified that the AFM did meet the migrant vessel, which left from Libya, in international waters, who refused any assistance from the AFM, insisting that they were not in a state of urgency.

He also explained that the AFM cannot forcibly intervene in international waters, and analyse the vessel to ensure that there were no safety or urgent issues at hand. The AFM continued to monitor the vessel.

The vessel, he said, was then intercepted in international waters by the Italian Coast Guard and naval assets contributing to Frontex Operation Themis, in a zone that was much closer to Lampedusa than to Malta.