Lampedusa refugees evacuated

Around one hundred and seventy migrants who had been kept on the Italian territory of Lampedusa have been evacuated.

The island’s centre had been designed to house up to 850 people for around 48 hours.

However it has been steadily transformed into a long-term refugee camp, leading to accusations of crowded, unsanitary conditions.

Most of the migrants are now being taken to the Italian mainland by air.

Giusi Nicolini, the Mayor of Lampedusa says the system needs changing.

“I believe nothing can be the same as before. The parliament, all governments and especially the Italian government must realise that we must work seriously to totally reform how we treat asylum seekers in our country,” he said.

Last week video footage emerged appearing to show the refugees, some of them naked, in the freezing cold being being sprayed with disinfectant.

This led to a storm of criticism.