Brussels, 02/08/2007 (Agence Europe) - Through its leader, Joseph Daul, the EPP-ED group in the European Parliament has called for the FRONTEX Nautilus II operation combating illegal immigration in the Mediterranean to be resumed immediately. The operation, launched in early June in the Strait of Sicily, between Malta and Italy, ended last week. “It appears that the mission has been effective in reducing the number of arrivals in Malta, when one compares to the arrivals in the same period last month (50% less) - although it is still too early to judge,” Mr Daul said in a press release. “If reductions in numbers were indeed due to the effectiveness of the mission, then it is clear that it does not make any sense to stop them in peak season, during the crucial months of August and September,” he added. In a letter to Immigration Commissioner Franco Frattini, Mr Daul calls for the immediate resumption of the FRONTEX operation. “I am sure that your intervention will have a determining impact on the resumption of the FRONTEX mission in the Mediterranean area,” he wrote. The group leader's initiative follows on from a request from Maltese MEP Simon Busuttil (EPP-ED). Last week, Maltese Interior Minister Tonio Borg also called for the operation to be resumed. (bc)