After the rescue, the Italian Coastguard Service stated that most of them were of Syrian origin, but further investigations revealed that the majority were not from the Arab country that has been at war for more than five years.
According to UNHCR, in fact, a large number of the members of the group that set sail from Egypt on two separate boats are Egyptians, Somalis and Eritreans.
The majority is not from Syria, but what is true is that the route (from Egypt) is very long and very risky and these people, who include many families with babies, have been adrift at sea for several days, up to one week, stated the UNHCR spokeswoman, Carlotta Sami.
The spokeswoman confirmed the original information that two boats departed from Egypt instead of Libya, known as the usual route to the people traffickers that operate in the African northern region.
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