At least 20 migrants missing after vessel sinks off Italian island

At least 20 migrants are believed to be missing in the Mediterranean after their vessel sank off the Italian island of Lampedusa, Italy's coastguard and a senior UN refugee agency official said Wednesday.

“Twenty people are reported missing in the Mediterranean after a shipwreck on September 1,” Chiara Cardoletti, the UNHCR official for Italy, posted on X.

“The seven survivors, taken in by our team on Lampedusa, are in a critical condition,” she said, adding that several of them had lost loved ones in the disaster.

Italy's coastguard said 21 people were still missing after rescuing the survivors on Wednesday morning.

It said the vessel, found 20km off Lampedusa, “was drifting half-submerged in the water and on the point of sinking, with seven migrants on board, all of them men of Syrian nationality”.

Coastguard footage showed the men in a small vessel filled with water, transferring to the rescue boats on inflatable slides.

“The rescued migrants said that they had left Libya on September 1 with 28 people on board, three of them minors, of whom 21 had fallen in the water because of the bad weather conditions,” said the coastguard.

It was continuing to search for those missing, with an aircraft helping with the operation.

News of the latest sinking came the same day the Italian authorities decided to immobilise a rescue ship run by the Sea Watch group, saying it had not waited for the Libyan authorities to approve a rescue operation.

Sea-Watch 5 arrived in the Italian port of Civitavecchia on Wednesday carrying 289 people it had rescued. It will now have to wait 20 days before being able to leave port again.

Last year's migrant boat tragedy in Italy – in pictures

A view of the wreckage of a capsized boat that was washed ashore at a beach near Cutro, southern Italy. AP
Italian Coastguard officers stand by as rescue crews search for people believed still missing from the migrant shipwreck. AP
Pieces of the boat on the shore near Cutro. AP
People say prayers in Crotone, where the coffins of some of the victims were laid out. EPA
Personal belongings among the wreckage. AP
People lay tributes in Crotone. Reuters
Divers of the Firefighters Corps patrol the beach. AFP
Rescue teams search for people believed to be still missing. AP

Many non-governmental organisation ships have been detained, sometimes repeatedly, for breaking the law, though those detentions are sometimes overturned by the courts.

In 2023, more than 3,000 migrants were reported missing after having attempted the perilous Mediterranean crossing from North Africa, according to the UN's International Organisation for Migration.

Italian Interior Ministry figures suggest those numbers have fallen sharply since the beginning of the year.

According to them, 43,061 migrants had arrived in Italy since the start of the year, compared to 115,177 over the same period last year.

Since Giorgia Meloni's right-wing coalition government came to power in October 2022, it has sought to stem the arrival of migrant boats to Italy from North Africa.

Italian law requires that NGOs head “without delay” to a port immediately after a rescue is completed – preventing them from carrying out several in a row.

The NGOs argue that it violates maritime law, which requires any ship to come to the aid of a boat in distress.

But failing to comply risks a fine of up to €10,000 euros ($10,700), and potentially the seizure of the vessel.

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Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026

1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years

If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.

2. E-invoicing in the UAE

Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.

3. More tax audits

Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.

4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime

Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.

5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit

There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.

6. Further transfer pricing enforcement

Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.

7. Limited time periods for audits

Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.

8. Pillar 2 implementation

Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.

9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services

Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.

10. Substance and CbC reporting focus

Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.

Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer

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The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.

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Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.

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