Italy should close ports, Orban tells Gentiloni

(ANSA) - Budapest, July 21 - Italy should "close the ports" to stop the flow of asylum seekers from the Mediterranean, Hungarian Premier Viktor Orban said on Friday. Orban said that the four leaders of the Visegrad group, which also includes the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland, have written a letter to this effect to Italian Premier Paolo Gentiloni. According to Orban, who is not ruling out the military option, the problem must be resolved in Libya. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said Friday that 93,369 asylum seekers arrived in Italy via sea up to July 19 this year, 85% of the total of 111,514 for the whole of Europe.
    It said 2,360 people have died trying to cross the Mediterranean so far this year.