Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/574624
MIRIAM DALLI MALTA will be taking in 189 refugees from Italy and Greece under a new re- location plan agreed to by EU interior ministers, Home Affairs Minister Car- melo Abela confirmed. EU interior ministers yesterday voted by a majority to adopt a resolution on the redistribution of asylum seekers among EU member states. The Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania and Hungary voted against while Finland chose to abstain. Home Affairs Ministers agreed to re- locate 120,000 refugees from Greece, Italy and other Member States directly affected by the refugee crisis, less than three weeks after the European Com- mission came forward with its propos- al. According to the decision, 66,000 per- sons will be relocated from Italy and Greece (15,600 from Italy and 50,400 from Greece). The remaining 54,000 persons will be relocated from Italy and Greece in the same proportion after one year of the entry into force of the decision. The member states partici- pating in the mechanism will receive a lump sum of €6,000 for each relocated person. Malta will be taking in 71 refu- gees out of 66,000 and 58 refugees out of 54,000. The numbers exclude a group of 60 refugees that will be taken in un- der an original plan to relocate 40,000 people. WWW.MALTATODAY.COM.MT WEDNESDAY EDITION €1.00 WWW.MALTATODAY.COM.MT WEDNESDAY EDITION ISSUE NO. 69 | SEPTEMBER 2015 THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE KAMRA TALPERITI NEWSPAPER POST FREE PAGE 5 Oceana Restaurant at the Hilton. Hilton Malta Hotel, Portomaso, St Julians. PTM 01. Malta Call. +356 21 383 383 www.hiltonmaltahotel.com Sunday Lunch Buffet Our chefs have paid extra attention to present a lavish buffet for all to enjoy. The popular Sunday buffet Lunch at the Oceana Restaurant is back on the 27 th September 2015. E V E R Y M O M E N T H A S A S T O R Y Adults €35 Children 6-12 €10 Compilmentary parking on first come first served basis. Newspaper post WEDNESDAY • 23 SEPTEMBER 2015 • ISSUE 434 • PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY MATTHEW AGIUS A 14-year old boy has appeared in the dock before the Gozo courts, charged with invol- untary homicide in connection with a tragic beach incident which led to his friend's pa- ralysis and eventual death. Young James Xuereb had suffered spinal in- juries when the accused, who is also 14 and a friend of the victim, had landed on Xuereb's back after the two had jumped in to the water, from a height, at Xatt l-Aħmar in Gozo on 9 July this year. Xuereb had been rushed to hospital, com- plaining that he was unable to move his arms and legs. Emergency doctors' worst fears were confirmed when it was found that Xuereb's spinal cord had been damaged in the colli- sion. The youngster, who had been looking for- ward to starting 5th form at the end of sum- mer, remained in a critical condition since the incident and succumbed to his injuries only 10 days ago. Presiding over the Juvenile Court in Xewkija, Gozo, yesterday, Magistrate Joe Mifsud called on beachgoers to be mindful of other bathers and strive to take the necessary measures to prevent such tragedies from being repeated. The court heard Police Inspector Bernard Spiteri testify that police investigations had concluded that Xuereb had jumped into the sea moments before the accused, whose leap into the water apparently landed him square- ly on top of the victim. The duty magistrate at the time had not felt an inquiry to be neces- sary at that stage, added the inspector. The accused is pleading not guilty to the charge. It emerged that the victim's mother had ini- tially held back from filing a police report, on account of the two boys' friendship, but had later changed her mind about this. Minors under 14 years of age are exempt from criminal responsibility for their acts, but with an eye on containing the psychologi- cal damage suffered by the accused, the court appointed a probation officer to help him deal with the trauma of the events. The magistrate appealed to bathers to take greater care at the beach. The case continues on 3 November. Lawyer Carmelo Galea represented the accused, whilst lawyer Kathleen Grima ap- peared parte civile for the victim's family. 14-YEAR-OLD CHARGED WITH INVOLUNTARY MURDER OF HIS FRIEND IN TRAGIC BEACH INCIDENT Malta to take 189 refugees after EU ministers vote to relocate 120,000 EU Commissioner for Migration Dimitris Avramopoulos