Canale Cinque quoted Italian Interior Minister Giuseppe Pisanu as saying the illegal immigrants should be sent back to the country they first made contact with – Malta.

The illegal immigrants were in fact offered assistance by the AFM and 90 of them were taken aboard patrol boats and were brought into Malta. The remaining 94, however, decided to proceed to Sicily. Twenty-four of these were female and four of them were pregnant.

Mr Pisanu is understood to have said that the Maltese Government did not act in a correct manner and said the Italian authorities would be exercising their right to send the immigrants back to the original EU entry point – Malta. He was quoted on Canale Cinque as having said: “We will send them back to Valletta.” The Italians say the law is clear on the matter and Malta had the obligation to assume responsibility for the situation.

Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi mentioned the incident during a party activity yesterday and said that the Maltese authorities did what they could and brought 90 illegal immigrants into Malta. He said that while they were being ferried to Malta, the rest who were still on their own boat, decided to set off for Sicily despite the prevailing bad weather.

The Italian Government did not say when they would send the immigrants back. This is not the first time that illegal immigrants have been sent back to Malta in similar circumstances.