Libyan patrol fires on Italian fishing boat

Published on 14 September 2010 at 10:22

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"Fired on at sea by the Libyans", proclaims the headline of Corriere della Sera, after a Libyan launch opened fire on an Italian fishing vessel in international waters in the Gulf of Sidra (which Libya claims as its own). Hoping to avoid the seizure of their boat, the Italian crew ignored the gunfire-punctuated summations of the Libyan craft — one of six ironically provided by Italian authorities to Libya in support of their bilateral agreement to combat illegal immigration — and turned right around. According to Italian government sources, this was just an "incident", but the episode has reopened the controversy surrounding the agreements signed with Libya, and many in Italy are calling for a revision or annulment of these accords.

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