As the European Union debates the contentious issue of immigration, Italy continues to accept daily boat-loads of people from north Africa.<br /><br /> Italian media reports a privately-funded search and rescue vessel has intercepted boats containing hundreds of people and carried them to safety in Sicily. <br /><br /> 407 migrants/refugees from Eritrea, Somalia, Gambia and Syria arriving in Messina, Sicily on moas_eu MSF_Sea ship pic.twitter.com/0GWryZwz6y— Alexander Marquardt (@MarquardtA) May 16, 2015 <br /><br /> The M.Y. Phoenix belongs to a couple from Malta, who work with aid group Migrant Offshore Aid Station (MOAS) and Doctors Without Borders.<br /><br /> Dr Simon Bryant is working on behalf of Doctors Without Borders in Messina, Sicily.<br /><br /> “So, we ended up with 407 people on this boat, and one young man had a surgical problem,” he said. “We had to transfer him to Lampedusa to the Coast Guard vessel. Also we saw lots of skin conditions, like scabies, in this group – maybe (about) 80 people. We screen everybody when t
