Angelina Jolie visits the Italian island of Lampedusa on Sunday (June 19).

The 36-year-old actress and UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador thanked residents for hosting more than 40,000 refugees who have been fleeing the unrest and violence in north Africa.

Angelina traveled from Malta, where she made a stop at detention facilities, which held people waiting for their asylum requests to be processed.

“Malta has saved many lives, but it is the daily conditions on the ground that are of most concern. We’ve spoken about our shared concerns about making sure asylum claims are processed as quickly as possible so no one is sitting in a prison-like situation and waiting on a decision about their status,” Angelina said.

“They are not asking to go to any particular country, they just want to find safety to work and to have freedom,” she added.

On Friday, Angelina was in Turkey where she met with refugees at a camp near the border with Syria.

source: www.justjared.com