STORY: Plight of refugees must not be ignored: Italy's president
DATELINE: June 21, 2023
LENGTH: 0:02:23
LOCATION: Rome
CATEGORY: POLITICS

SHOTLIST:
1. President Mattarella paying tribute to the victims of a shipwreck of refugees on March 2, 2023
2. various of the Vigili del Fuoco's searching and rescuing of the shipwreck of refugees on Feb 26, 2023
3. various of some migrants on the street of Rome

STORYLINE:

Marking World Refugee Day, Italy's President Sergio Mattarella on Tuesday called for greater attention to the plight of refugees forced to flee their home in search of safety from violence and economic hardships.
   
"A sense of humanity and respect for the highest values ... requires that we do not ignore their plight," he said in a press release.
   
"In celebrating World Refugee Day today, it is appropriate to reiterate that initiatives to assist these people -- and in particular refugees in particularly vulnerable conditions -- must be accompanied by the search for indispensable and urgent long-term structural solutions," Mattarella said.
   
Last year, nearly 110 million people were "forcibly displaced" globally, an increase of 19 million compared to the end of 2021, according to a report published in June by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
   
In Europe, UNHCR data showed that the number of displaced and stateless people rose to 21.8 million at the end of last year, with much of the increase due to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, deteriorating economic and weather conditions, and political conflicts in Africa and the Middle East.
   
Italy is by far the most common landing spot for migrant arrivals from Africa, the Middle East, and beyond, most of whom via the dangerous route across the Mediterranean Sea. As of Sunday, more than 56,000 people have arrived in Italy this year, UNHCR said.
   
Meanwhile, around 7,000 arrived -- by land and sea combined -- in Greece and around 10,400 arrived in Spain.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Rome.
(XHTV)