ROME (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 23rd July, 2020) The migrant reception center on the Italian island of Lampedusa is housing ten times its capacity, la Repubblica newspaper reported on Thursday.
On Wednesday night, 294 migrants reached the island on 15 vessels, according to the news outlet.
As of now, there are 954 people in the island's reception, designed to host a maximum of 95.
According to the Italian Interior Ministry, 11,100 migrants arrived in Italy from January 1 - July 23, compared to 3,400 in 2019 and almost 18,000 in 2018 for the same period.
The fluctuations in numbers are explained by the policies of former Interior Minister Matteo Salvini, who left his office in September and is known for being an immigration hawk.
