Number of migrants landing in Italy more than doubles in past year - Reuters
More than 21,000 people reached Italy between August 2019 and the end of July, up 148% year-on-year, the minister said, speaking at an annual Aug. 15 press conference.
Lamorgese said the majority of the arrivals were "autonomous landings, hard to manage... with small boats and dinghies", rather than those rescued at sea and brought ashore. Many of them land on Italy's southern Mediterranean island of Lampedusa.
In the 12-month period, just over 5,000 people were rescued, mainly by ships operated by NGOs, according to data from the ministry.
