Rescue mission on the Mediterranean: Every year, thousands of people fleeing violence and hunger leave their homelands, only to perish in the Mediterranean. The crew of the rescue ship ‘Humanity 1’ is saving as many as they can.
After three days of sailing, the Humanity 1 search-and-rescue vessel arrived Saturday (July 15) in Italy’s Ancona port with about 200 migrants onboard.
Some 88 migrants rescued off the Libya coast four days prior arrived in the Italian port city of Livorno on May 30 on board the Humanity 1 ship. Among them are 11 minors, 10 of whom are unaccompanied.
A group of 69 migrants and refugees disembarked from the NGO ship Humanity 1 in Ravenna, northern Italy, this week. Almost half of them were from Sudan.
An Italian court has declared a decree restricting sea rescue unlawful. The decree issued by the Italian government stipulates that only the migrants most in need of protection from a rescue ship are allowed to go ashore.
Some of the 261 migrants who reached the Puglia port city of Bari on Sunday, December 11, were in poor health and needed to be hospitalized. A nurse on board the rescue vessel Humanity 1 said a few passengers rescued off Libya's coast were in "terrible medical conditions".
The two vessels were allowed to dock amid bad weather despite antagonism from Italian authorities. Dozens of children were among the rescued survivors.
The Association for Juridical Studies on Immigration (ASGI) has demanded that Italy allow all those on NGO migrant rescue ships off Catania to disembark. The association includes lawyers, legal experts, and scholars studying issues linked to migration.
Three men onboard the Geo Barents vessel leapt into the water in the port of Catania, but were then quickly pulled from the water. Refugee rights groups have called on Italy to follow international law.
Three children and one infant were among the first migrants to be disembarked in the Catania port from the Humanity ship on November 6, while Pope Francis urged Europe not to abandon Italy.
Italy granted rescue ship Humanity 1 access to a port in Sicily, but dozens of male migrants were barred from disembarkation. Only minors and those in need of medical care were allowed to enter.