TUNISIA, Apr 1 (NNN-TAP) – Tunisian National Guard spokesman, Houcemeddine Jbabli, said yesterday that, 74 undocumented migrants of sub-Saharan African nationalities were intercepted, off Tunisia’s south-east coast, while attempting to cross the Mediterranean to Italy.
“As part of the fight against illegal immigration, two illegal immigration attempts were foiled late Thursday night, off the Sfax coast,” Jbabli said in a statement.
Those immigrants were trying to cross the Mediterranean towards the Italian island of Lampedusa. The island of Lampedusa is about 80 km away from the Tunisian coast and is usually the first stop chosen by undocumented migrants for their sea voyage towards Italy.
Despite the strict measures taken by the Tunisian authorities, to tackle illegal immigration, the number of migrants attempting to reach Italy via Tunisia has been on the rise.– NNN-TAP
