Italy slams rebel north as migrant crisis deepens

Series Title
Series Details 09.06.15
Publication Date 09/06/2015
Content Type

Italy's government criticised the country's powerful northern regions on the 8 June 2015 for their 'unjust' refusal to accommodate more migrants.

On the 7 June 2015 Lombardy's president Roberto Maroni had ruled out taking in more migrants and also threatened to cut regional funding to cities who took migrants in, prompting other northern regions (including Liguria and Veneto) to also make anti-immigration comments.

By early June 2015 it was estimated that the number of migrants to have arrived in Italy by boat in 2015 passed 50,000.

Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said it was hard to seek EU help on migration 'when some regions in your own country say the problem has nothing to with them'.

News sources reported on the 12 June 2015 that Italy's immigration crisis intensified after a build-up of asylum-seekers at two major train stations resulted in clashes with police, an outcry from the right and fresh calls from Rome for EU help.

On the 14 June 2015 Matteo Renzi called on the EU to reform its rules on asylum seekers amid the huge influx of boat migrants on Italian soil. His plea came as neighboring countries such as France, Germany and Austria tightened border controls.

The crisis 'should not be underestimated. It is a serious issue and, let me be clear, Europe's answers so far have not been good enough,' Renzi said in an interview published in the Corriere della Sera.

France insisted on the 15 June 2015 that Italy take in dozens of migrants camped out on the Franco-Italian border, amid a growing clash between the two neighbours over Europe's immigration crisis.

Italian police evacuated dozens of mainly African migrants from their shelter under a railway bridge on the Franco-Italian border on the 16 June 2015, which had become a flashpoint in Europe's immigration crisis.

Source Link Link to Main Source http://www.thelocal.it/20150609/italy-slams-anti-immigrant-north-as-crisis-deepens
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BBC News, 08.06.15: Italy PM Renzi attacks northern regions for refusing migrants http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-33055771
The Guardian, 07.06.15: Mediterranean migrant crisis: number of arrivals in Italy in 2015 passes 50,000 http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jun/07/mediterranean-migrant-arrivals-italy-passes-50000
The Local.it, 09.06.15: Turning away migrants 'heartless': Sicily mayor http://www.thelocal.it/20150609/sicilian-mayor-slams-heartless-anti-migrant-north
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Deutsche Welle, 13.06.15: Italy battles to house migrants at border with France http://dw.de/p/1FgsS
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France24, 15.06.15: France warns Italy against bending EU rules in migrant row http://www.france24.com/en/20150615-france-italy-migrant-crisis-eu-european-union-cazeneuve-renzi
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The Local.it, 04.08.15: Rome 'too crowded' for more migrants: mayor http://www.thelocal.it/20150804/rome-too-overcrowded-for-more-migrants-mayor

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