Italian authorities have detained a migrant rescue ship for 20 days after it disobeyed an order about where to disembark its passengers, the charity which operates the vessel said on Monday.
The 14-metre ex-lifeboat Aurora picked up 72 people in distress in the central Mediterranean on Friday, and was told by Italian authorities to take them to the Sicilian port of Trapani, said German non-governmental organisation Sea-Watch.
But the crew warned the port was “unreachable” as they were low on fuel and running out of water in high temperatures.
They asked instead to go to the Italian island of Lampedusa, which they said was “four times closer”, but were refused — and even told to go to Tunisia, Sea-Watch said. In the end, “due to the extreme situation on board” in which one person was found unconscious, the Aurora was allowed to dock at Lampedusa on Saturday afternoon, it said.
“The ship, however, is now detained for 20 days based on the Italian government decree on sea rescue, and Sea-Watch will be fined between 2,500 and 10,000 euros ($2,725 and $10,900),” the charity said in a statement. The decree was passed by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s right-wing government, which took office in October vowing to curb the number of migrants arriving on Italy’s shores.—AFP
