Mediterranean

Britain arrests Egyptian man suspected of organising Mediterranean migrant crossings

LONDON, June 22 (Reuters) - Britain's National Crime Agency (NCA) said on Thursday it had arrested an Egyptian man suspected of coordinating the smuggling of thousands of people across the…

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Frontex reports increase of 158% in migrant arrivals in Central Mediterranean

The number of migrants who arrived on the central Mediterranean route mainly to Italy rose by 158% in the first five months of the year compared to the same period…

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Eni, Chevron announce new Mediterranean gas discovery

Italian energy group Eni and U.S. energy major Chevron revealed that they had made a new gas discovery in an Egyptian offshore field in the Eastern Mediterranean sea. The Nargis-1…

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Spain’s Sanchez says EUMED will push for dynamic gas price cap

ALICANTE, Spain, Dec 9 (Reuters) - The leaders of the nine Mediterranean countries in the EU agreed on Friday to push for a dynamic cap on gas prices rather than a fixed…

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Tourism revenues on the mend in Mediterranean countries

Even if the number of visitors has still not quite recovered to pre-pandemic levels, Mediterranean countries are enjoying a much-needed boost as inflation and a strong sector recovery lift this…

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Italy proposes yearly Mediterranean Culture Capital

The Mediterranean area will have its own cultural capital, elected every year, Culture Minister Dario Franceschini said after a summit of 30 culture ministers from the area and beyond in…

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Europe’s south expects over 150,000 migrant arrivals this year – minister

Mediterranean countries on major migrant routes into Europe expect over 150,000 arrivals this year as food shortages caused by the Ukraine conflict threaten a new migration wave from Africa and…

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IOM: Up to 600 missing at sea in 3 months in Central Mediterranean

The International Organization for Migration says up to 600 people attempting to reach Europe by sea from Tunisia and Libya have gone missing during the first three months of 2022,…

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Malta expresses strong support for Union for the Mediterranean

Minister for Foreign and European Affairs Evarist Bartolo expressed Malta's strong support for the Union for the Mediterranean as it is the only regional structure that addresses the common challenges…

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Lebanese firefighters put out fire at fuel facility

BEIRUT, Oct 11 (Reuters) - Firefighters put out a blaze that raged for several hours at a gasoline storage tank in southern Lebanon on Monday, the latest blow to a…

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EU’s Mediterranean states demand global action on climate crisis

ATHENS, Sept 17 (Reuters) - Leaders of the EU's bloc of nine southern European members on Friday demanded urgent global action to combat a worsening climate crisis and build a…

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“Diplomacy remains the best tool for resolving conflicts” – Minister Evarist Bartolo

"A lot of issues today can't be solved by one country alone whoever the country is. So, whether we like it or not, we are condemned to working together." Malta's…

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Disputes and divisions in the Eastern Mediterranean are not on maps but in the hearts and minds of all of us involved, our histories and traditions – Evarist Bartolo

The following is a speech delivered by Malta's Foreign Minister Evarist Bartolo on Friday 14th May, which CDEIU is carrying as it presents a timely invitation to 'dare to dream'…

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Europe’s south calls for more solidarity in new EU migration pact

Mediterranean countries on the frontline of Europe's migration crisis called for more solidarity from EU governments on Saturday and said a proposed overhaul of migration rules did not go far…

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Greece wants quick EU action on vaccine passports

Greece is calling on EU authorities to "move more quickly" and embrace vaccine certificates, which could restore an element of mass travel in Europe. Speaking to the Financial Times, the…

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EU proposes new Agenda for the Mediterranean

To relaunch and strengthen the strategic partnership between the European Union and its Southern Neighbourhood partners, the European Commission and the High Representative today adopted a joint communication proposing an…

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EU launches new Agenda for the Mediterranean

To relaunch and strengthen the strategic partnership between the European Union and its Southern Neighbourhood partners, the European Commission and the High Representative today adopted a joint communication proposing an…

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Spanish police arrest drugs gang in Mediterranean after high-speed chase

A gang of drugs traffickers has been arrested after a dramatic speedboat chase across over 100 miles of the Mediterranean during which they tried to dump bags of hashish, police…

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Turkey extends exploration in disputed Mediterranean area to Nov. 4

Turkey said it was extending the seismic survey work of its Oruc Reis ship in a disputed area of the eastern Mediterranean until Nov. 4, taking a step which was…

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Chartering the waves – Rolex Middle Sea Race 2020

It was a glorious day to start a yacht race. Valletta’s golden limestone bastions, rising boldly from the waters of Grand Harbour, bathed in bright sunshine. The force 4 north…

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The role of the US and Malta in the Mediterranean – U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Gwendolyn S. Green

U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Gwendolyn S. Green was interviewed by Denise Grech Malta has recently teamed up with Turkey in an attempt to make Libya stable. According to reports, Malta and…

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U.S. ‘deeply concerned’ about Turkey’s action in Easter Mediterranean

The United States remains "deeply concerned" about Turkey's actions in the eastern Mediterranean, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Saturday, urging a diplomatic end to a simmering crisis over…

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Greece plans to strengthen military as tension with Turkey rise

Greece plans to acquire arms, boost its armed forces and revamp its defence industry, the government's spokesman said on Monday, as tensions with NATO ally Turkey over energy resources in…

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Greek parliament ratifies maritime accord with Egypt

The Greek parliament ratified an accord defining maritime boundaries between Greece and Egypt on Thursday, amid rising tensions with neighbouring Turkey over energy resources in the eastern Mediterranean. The pact,…

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Warning Russian jets in Libya present broader threat for Mediterranean region

U.S. Africa Command flatly rejected Russian claims that Moscow did not deploy fighter jets to Libya, saying Friday that the 14 aircraft flown in reflect Russia’s longer term goal to…

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Another dangerous confrontation between US and Russian aircraft over the Mediterranean

Russian pilots intercepted a US Navy aircraft in an "unsafe and unprofessional manner" on Tuesday for the third time within four days, claimed the US Naval Forces Sixth Fleet. Two…

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4.1 earthquake off the coast of Malta

An earthquake measuring 4.1 shook the central Mediterranean off the coast of Malta on Wednesday night. The tremor was also registered by the University of Malta Seismic Monitoring & Research…

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No boat capsized as FRONTEX accounts for all boats in the Med

Frontex, told AFP on Monday it said "all four boats have been accounted for" and there had been no shipwreck in the Mediterranean. "Two arrived in Sicily and two remain…

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UN calls on European countries not to return asylum seekers to Libya

The United Nations has called on the European countries to end the suffering of asylum seekers rescued in the Mediterranean, and not to return them to Libya. The Libyan Observer…

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Alarm Phone demands answers as Rubber Dinghy with 91 migrants goes missing in the Mediterranean

A rubber dinghy packed with 91 migrants that set out from Libyan shores in hopes of reaching Europe has apparently gone missing in the Mediterranean, the U.N. migration agency said…

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EU to launch new naval operation in the central Mediterranean to replace Operation Sophia

EU foreign affairs ministers have agreed to launch a new naval operation in the Central Mediterranean, with the old mission that was supposed to fulfill that brief — Operation Sophia…

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Italy and Spain to work towards new European pact on immigration

Italy and Spain would work towards a new European pact on immigration Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said after talks with his Spanish counterpart Arancha González Laya. ANSA reports…

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Greece ‘registers disagreement’ with Libya-Turkey maritime accord

Greece said it opposed an accord reached by Turkey and Libya to define their maritime boundaries but said it and Ankara - both members of NATO - were committed to…

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Land migration in Africa twice as deadly as Mediterranean, says UNHCR

While the Mediterranean Sea remains a deadly route for migrants attempting to reach the European Union, the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has warned that the African land journey to…

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Cannes to ban polluting cruise ships from its harbour

Mediterranean resort town Cannes, France's fourth-biggest cruise ship port, will ban the most polluting cruise ships from next year in a bid to boost air quality in the city. The…

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Greek Prime Minister in Cyprus for official visit

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Monday begins a two-day official visit to Cyprus, his first after assuming office following the elections on July 7. He will be accompanied by…

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Renewed commitment to Mediterranean rescues encouraging, but ‘overriding priority’ must be ‘lasting peace’, say UN officials

The heads of the two key UN agencies championing refugees and migrants have called for an end to their “arbitrary detention” across Libya, following an agreement on Tuesday by European…

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IOM and UNHCR urges EU to restart Mediterranean Rescue Operations

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) and UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) have called on the EU to implement a series of measures aimed at assisting people trapped in Libya or…

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Washington Post on Malta’s role in the Mediterranean migrants’ rescue operations

With Italy firmly blocking its seaports, the tiny island country of Malta has emerged as an unlikely and reluctant lifeline for migrants making the perilous journey across the Mediterranean Sea.…

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Pope Francis expresses his hope for humanitarian corridors for migrants

Pope Francis on Sunday invited the faithful to join him in prayer for the “poor, unarmed people who were killed or injured by an air strike on a detention center…

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Malta’s Armed forced rescue 37 persons in migration route

The Armed Forces of Malta rescued a group of 37 persons early on Sunday morning. In a statement on Sunday afternoon, the AFM said the rescue people were being taken…

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UN warns that the Mediterranean will be a sea of blood due to lack of NGO rescue ships and Libya’s conflict

The risk of migrants and refugees becoming shipwrecked in the Mediterranean and dying at sea is the highest it has ever been due to a lack of NGO rescue ships…

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Busy night for the AFM as more people saved in the Mediterranean

A total of 270 persons are expected in Malta Wednesday morning after being saved by the AFM in separate rescue operations in the Mediterranean. In the first operation 63…

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Russian and US warplanes confront each other over the Mediterranean

Aircraft of Russia and United States came face to face on Tuesday as the former intercepted a US aircraft flying in international airspace over the Mediterranean Sea three times in…

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Photo Story: Migrant swimming to safety

A Libyan migrant has been filmed being picked up by a private tug boat after jumping from a vessel that suffered technical failure. The man was one of a number…

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One after one they let go, they departed under the water, one after one – The witness of the survivor of the Mediterranean latest human tragedy

A survivor of a migrant boat disaster in the Mediterranean has told how he watched fellow passengers slip away and sink to their deaths. Euronews interviews Ahmed Bilal, from Bangladesh, who…

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