London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Jul 13, 2025

Italy’s migrant battle: Salvini seizes on island hit by overcrowding

Italy’s migrant battle: Salvini seizes on island hit by overcrowding

Reception center on Lampedusa is 500 percent over capacity as Italy’s right fire up election campaigns.

A wave of migrant boat landings on the Italian island of Lampedusa has put local reception services under huge pressure, in a development that is being seized on by the far right ahead of elections.

Italy is holding a snap vote in September after Prime Minister Mario Draghi lost the support of his governing coalition last week.

The Italian island of Lampedusa is experiencing difficulties with overcrowding after hundreds of migrants were dropped off there over the past few days. Lampedusa, just 100 kilometers off the coast of Tunisia, is the closest port of call for migrants fleeing hardship in Africa or seeking a new life in Europe.

As of Monday, a migrant reception center on the island, intended to house 350 people, is over capacity by 500 percent, with almost 1,900 migrants. Seven boat landings on Monday morning added to crowding.

The NGO rescue vessel Sea Watch 3 carrying another 400 people is also waiting to be allocated a safe port, although a child with burns and a pregnant woman were brought on shore already.

The new emergency is likely to be a boon for Italy’s hard-right politicians as they launch their election campaigns.

Former Interior Minister Matteo Salvini, leader of the League party, who is known for his hard-line stance on migrants, is looking to capitalize on the situation.

As interior minister between 2018 and 2019 Salvini closed migrant camps and ordered a crackdown on NGO migrant rescue vessels, blocking the ports.

While part of Draghi’s coalition government for the past 17 months, Salvini regularly sniped at Interior Minister Luciana Lamorgese. Salvini judged her to be inadequate at tackling migration and last week appealed to Draghi for her removal before the government collapsed.

Salvini seems to have his heart set on returning to the interior ministry if the right win the election, to be held on September 25.

Salvini tweeted about migrants five times on Sunday. One tweet said there was a need to “return to defending the Italian borders after the repeated failures of Lamorgese. Who will do it? The next interior minister?” he asked his followers. “What do you think friends?”

In the meantime the deputy mayor of Lampedusa Attilio Lucia, also a League member, has asked for Salvini’s help, saying the that migrants are sleeping on mattresses on the ground and sheltering under trees for shade. Law and order are also pressed he said. “The island cannot become a giant refugee camp.”

Salvini immediately changed his schedule to visit Lampedusa next week, saying he would “bring solutions.”

At a League event in Domodossola, northern Italy, over the weekend, Salvini told supporters that the League could come first in elections. “The first proposal that the League will bring to Cabinet will be a new security decree with a commitment to zero illegal immigrants around our country. Stop boats and immediately go home,” he said.

Salvini is currently on trial for kidnapping after refusing to allow migrants to land while interior minister, but is likely to turn the trial into an opportunity to rally support. The next hearing is a week before the September 25 election.

Salvini hopes to use the issue to make up ground on his rivals in the right wing coalition Brothers of Italy party, for whom immigration is also a central issue. Leader of Brothers of Italy Giorgia Meloni posted several tweets about migrants accused of violent crime over the weekend.

Brothers of Italy remained in opposition during Draghi’s government and overtook the League in the polls. A poll on Monday put Brothers of Italy on 24 percent versus 13 percent for the League.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
President Trump Visits Flood-Ravaged Texas, Praises Community Strength and First Responders
From Mystery to Meltdown, Crisis Within the Trump Administration: Epstein Files Ignite A Deepening Rift at the Highest Levels of Government Reveals Chaos, Leaks, and Growing MAGA Backlash
Trump Slams Putin Over War Death Toll, Teases Major Russia Announcement
Reparations argument crushed
Rainmaker CEO Says Cloud Seeding Paused Before Deadly Texas Floods
A 92-year-old woman, who felt she doesn't belong in a nursing home, escaped the death-camp by climbing a gate nearly 8 ft tall
French Journalist Acquitted in Controversial Case Involving Brigitte Macron
Elon Musk’s xAI Targets $200 Billion Valuation in New Fundraising Round
Kraft Heinz Considers Splitting Off Grocery Division Amid Strategic Review
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
EU Proposes New Tax on Large Companies to Boost Budget
Trump Imposes 35% Tariffs on Canadian Imports Amid Trade Tensions
Junior Doctors in the UK Prepare for Five-Day Strike Over Pay Disputes
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Biden’s Doctor Pleads the Fifth to Avoid Self-Incrimination on President’s Medical Fitness
Grok Chatbot Faces International Backlash for Antisemitic Content
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
Labour Expected to Withdraw Support for Special Needs Funding Model
Leaked Audio Reveals Tory Aide Defending DEI Record
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
×