Sewer Children Found in Rome (BBC)

April 6, 2009 by Hazel

Over 100 immigrants, including Afghan children, were found by Italian police living in the sewer system beneath Rome's railways stations.

The children, about 14 of them, range in age from 10 to 15 years. They are now under the care of the city social services. They do not speak Italian and were found by the railway police who followed up reports of children living near the city's stations. They broke into sewers by removing manhole covers.

Police said the Afghan children appeared to have arrived in the Italian capital as stowaways on board trailer trucks arriving from Turkey and Greece.

According to the Save the Children Italy, more than a thousand children arrived in Rome last year unaccompanied. They came from various countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

The number of foreign minors arriving in Italy has risen substantially over the past five years, according to children's charities.

(Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk)

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