A ship carrying 855 refugees including 47 children arrived in the port of Salermo, Italy at midnight. The refugees, from Sub-Saharan Africa, Somalia, Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Egypt, have been rescued in the recent days over the course of several operations by the Italian Navy off the coast of Sicily. The first to exit the ship were the sick refugees and people with infectious diseases. Among them were several wounded, including two men wounded by firearm, one of them with the bullet still in his body. Then disembarked the women, six are pregnant. None of the migrants remained in Salerno and all of them, with the exception of unaccompanied minors were quickly send to the refugee camps.

To clarify the unusual time of landing, the mayor of Salermo said “The requirement was to remove the refugees from the sea as soon as possible and we also need to respect the tourist arriving in  the city, and the city's economy”  he added “Salerno is a city of hospitality from both a social point of view and tourism.”

This morning the cruise ship Celebrity Constellation operated by Celebrity Cruises moored at dawn in Salermo carrying 3000 passengers and crew, remaining  in the city until 6:30 p.m.