Italy denies safe port for stranded migrants

By Busra Nur Bilgic Cakmak

ANKARA (AA) – Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini on Wednesday said that Italian waters and ports will remain closed to migrants who have been rescued by a Spanish vessel a week ago.

The Proactiva Open Arms -- a Spanish NGO owned ship devoted to search and rescue at sea – had rescued some 121 migrants last week. It has been searching a port of safety in Italy or Malta.

“The Open Arms has been in the Mediterranean for the past six days. It is now threatening to enter Italy. It had plenty of time to reach Spain, the country of the NGO, which gave the flag to its ship and where some mayors are willing to take migrants in,” Salvini said on Twitter.

Salvini said that protecting lives of the people on board is not the real priority for the NGO but it aims to take political mileage out of migrant plight.

“They want to transfer all illegal immigrants to our country. I would like to remind The Open Arms that the Italian waters are closed and we are ready to seize the ship,” he added.

Italy has recently passed a new law that imposed fines up to €1 million ($1.12 million) for NGO-run rescue vessels.

The UNHCR has expressed concern over the new law and said this could hinder or even prevent rescue efforts at sea.

A total of 39,289 irregular migrants and refugees have reached Europe by sea since the beginning of 2019. As many as 840 died at sea, according to the International Organization for Migration.

More than 30,500 migrants died between 2014 and 2018 while taking the treacherous journey to Europe, IOM figures indicated in January.