The ship shown above, carrying an estimated 600 illegal immigrants, was towed into the southern Italian port of Gallipoli yesterday after its engine failed, local port authorities said. The Koiduk-s - originally registered in Istanbul under the name Ahmet Enon - was spotted drifting off the Italian coast. Italian naval personnel and rescue services said 60 children and several pregnant women were among those on board. Officials had earlier said there were some 900 illegal immigrants on the ship, including about 200 children.
The passengers, thought to be Turkish Kurds, were taken in buses to a local refugee centre where officials were due to establish their identities. They are believed to have each paid an average £1,800 for the journey to Italy.
The Italian authorities fear the number of illegals trying to reach its shores will multiply as the weather improves. Over the last decade, around 77,000 illegal immigrants have been caught near the Italian coast, while 15,000 were picked up along the border between Italy and Slovenia last year alone.