182 people rescued in 24 hours. These are the results of the most recent mission of Mediterranea Saving Humans, the NGO working with migrants between Tunisia and Lampedusa.
For the first time, the NGO's ship was not traveling alone. It was accompanied by a sailboat belonging to a foundation of the Italian Bishops' Conference.
Just a few hours before the ship left, Pope Francis sent a handwritten letter to the chaplain of the NGO, sending his best wishes and blessings the rescue teams.
The founder of Mediterranea Saving Humans, Luca Casarini, has a close relationship with Pope Francis. He is even a member of the Synod on Synodality.
And even beyond his official agenda, Pope Francis closely follows the work of this NGO. This July, he spent one of his first days of vacation with the founder and a group of migrants in his Vatican home.
Last year, the Pope met with more migrants who were saved by this NGO that has been operating since 2018 to rescue humans who are crossing the Mediterranean.
ARCHIVIO 2020
LUCA CASARINI
Founder, Mediterranea Saving Humans
The plight of migrants at sea—who are not migrants by choice—is that they're trying to escape the horror of Libya.
According to the UN, more than 200,000 migrants from Algeria, Libya and Tunisia crossed the Mediterranean in 2023 alone.
CA
TR: AT