In First Half of August, 2,000 Iilegal Immigrants Landed on Italy’s Coast, Says Minister Piantedosi — Il Giornale
In the first 15 days of August, around 2,000 illegal immigrants landed on Italy’s coasts, Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi said, according to Il Giornale.
He noted that while the figure is still high, it is less than half the 4,339 recorded in the same period in 2024 and far below the 12,070 in 2023 — a trend of sharp summer declines that began in July.
Since the Meloni government took office, arrivals have fallen by about 60% compared to 2023, with Piantedosi crediting deals with Libya and Tunisia for stopping more than 236,000 departures and assisted voluntary returns sending over 64,000 economic migrants back to their home countries.
The minister said these results show that “prevention begins at the points of departure,” and pledged to continue fighting “the ruthless profiteering of human traffickers” to bring shipwreck deaths down to zero.
He also stressed that Italy is working “very decisively” at the international level to tackle the networks behind illegal immigration.
