Coincidence reunites rescued infant with mother

An African child who early this month by sea was rescued by the Italian Coast Guard, can be reunited by a happy coincidence with her mother.

A photo on the phone Marilena Cefala, head of the reception center on Lampedusa, was the solution. A few days after the unknown girl had arrived, Cefala spoke with other migrants from Ivory Coast. Because she wanted to quietly converse, she left a young girl playing with her phone. The child looked at the pictures and recognized Oumoh, whom she had met in Tunisia.

The child knew also who the 31-year-old mother of the infant. After a search revealed that she was in Tunisia. She said she had fled because they wanted to protect Oumoh for genital mutilation. The girl's father had demanded a circumcision.

If a DNA test to confirm that the woman is indeed the mother, she may come to Italy.