Italian Red Cross (CRI) President Rosario Valastro has spoken about the number of people welcomed at the migrant hotspot on the stepping stone island of Lampedusa, closer to Africa than to Italy, which is managed by the organization he chairs.
The facility on Lampedusa hosted nearly 50,000 migrants in 2025, Italian Red Cross President Rosario Valastro said on International Migrants Day on December 18.
"Italian Red Cross volunteers and operators welcome the people who reach our coasts via Italian ports," Valastro told a press conference on Thursday, December 18.
"On Lampedusa alone, in 2025, the Italian Red Cross (CRI) hosted at the center in Contrada Imbriacola nearly 50,000 people (49,348) [who had reached the island ] via 975 landings."
Valastro went on to say that, "over 174,000 women, men and children arrived at the hotspot, between June 1, 2023 and today, via a total of some 4,000 landings."
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'Migrants hug us when they reach the port'
Valastro did not only discuss the number of people welcomed on Lampedusa. He also noted that migrants' lives "are an asset for us: when they reach the mainland they thank heaven they were able to complete their journey of hope, they hug us once they reach the pier because, when they see our uniform, they understand that someone will take care of them. This is about humanity. Conflicts, climate disasters and economic crises continue to drive millions of people to abandon their homes in search of safety or simply opportunities: we will continue to stand with those who suffer," stressed the president of the Italian Red Cross.
"No human being is illegal and saving lives, at sea as much as on the mainland, is a humanitarian duty," he stressed furthermore.
"The Red Cross Movement works daily to provide support and aid to people who move along migration routes, fleeing difficult contexts like wars, health crises, famine, and disasters."
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Over 160 Red Cross, Red Crescent teams offer support
Valastro also said he believes that "we are experiencing a very difficult period in which, due to this and other critical issues, it isn't possible to guarantee the safety of migrant people and their journeys. Often, for many of them, these crossings filled with dreams and possibilities turn into death, suffering and abuse. We will never turn the other way when confronted with this, we will never stand still. Each human being deserves dignity, each life deserves respect, each story deserves to be heard," he stressed.
Support for people on the move is constant, much like their journeys, noted the Italian Red Cross president.
Over 160 teams from the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement provide personalized assistance to millions of migrants and refugees each year, beyond borders and across migration routes, he concluded.
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