Italy will begin naval exercises off Libya

First entry: 2 March 2015

Italy will begin annual naval exercises this week near the coast of Libya, where a breakdown in order has allowed tens of thousands of migrants to try to reach Europe by boat and increased fears of attacks by Islamist militants.
The Italian navy said in a statement that the exercises, known as Mare Aperto (Open Sea), would begin on Monday.
Admiral Pierpaolo Ribuffo, the officer in command of exercises, said the operation was not directly connected with the crisis in Libya, where Italian energy group Eni has significant offshore oil platforms and other assets.
But he said the presence of naval vessels in the area could help improve security.
"We're training our ships and our men, that's all. Our activity has nothing to do with other scenarios…Obviously the presence of ships at sea also means security, deterrence and dissuasion…But that's normal, it's like police patrolling the streets," he told Italian news agency ANSA in comments that were subsequently released by the navy.
Officials have said that Italy, like other Western countries, faces a general risk but there has been no indication of any concrete threat and no evidence of violent militants among migrants, most of whom are from Africa or Syria.
Worries over a domestic threat were underlined by a report of a 64-page document in Italian, inviting Muslims to help "the Caliphate that will conquer Constantinople and Rome", the two centres of Medieval Christianity.
The document, was first reported on an Italian news website called Wikilao, which said it had been circulating on jihadist websites.
The report was picked up by several Italian newspapers and television stations on Sunday but there was no immediate confirmation by Italian officials.
Reuters