Illegal immigrants try to reach Italy by jet ski

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dpa German Press Agency
Published: Thursday November 30, 2006

Pantelleria, Italy- Two illegal immigrants from North Africa tried to reach the Italian coast by crossing the Mediterranean Sea on a jet ski, the Ansa news agency reported Thursday. The two men, a Tunisian and a Moroccan, said they had travelled overnight and were forced to alert Italy's coast guards by mobile phone after running out of petrol about 15 miles south of Pantelleria.

Pantelleria is a small Sicilian island located just 44 miles away from Kelibia, on the Tunisian coast, from where the two are said to have departed.

Both immigrants were eventually transferred by Italian officials to a reception centre in the Sicilian town of Trapani.

Tens of thousands of would-be immigrants reach Italy illegally each year by boarding boats, but this is the first time that a jet ski has been used to make the crossing, Ansa reported.

© 2006 dpa German Press Agency