Marco Minniti

 Italian police on Thursday arrested five Tunisians as part of what they said was a major operation against suspected supporters of Islamist terrorism in central and southern Italy, reported Reuters.

The swoop is the latest in a series of similar raids this month, coming as Italy steps up the number of foreigners it expels.

Europe's top human rights organization asked Italy for more information on its work intercepting migrants at sea, warning that any moves to return them to Libya would break international treaties.

A key pillar of the Italian government's effort to stem the politically toxic issue of people crossing the Mediterranean from Libya to southern Italy is in danger of collapse as a result of a bloody power struggle in the key Libyan port of Sabratha, the epicentre of human trafficking to Italy, The Guardian writes.

In his eight months in office, Marco Minniti, the austere Italian interior minister, has overseen a huge reduction in the number of African migrants and refugees reaching Italian shores from Libya, reported The Guardian. 

At the last count in August, the figure was 87% down on the previous year.