Libya's coast guard fired warning shots over a humanitarian vessel as it attempted to rescue a rubber boat carrying migrants off Libya's coast over the weekend, sea rescue group SOS Mediterranee said. Another charity published footage of shots fired in the water in an apparent attempt to force migrants on board.
Just a few years ago Astoun escaped his native Syria, crossing perilous waters to reach Europe. Now, aboard the Ocean Viking, he rescues people doing the same across the Mediterranean.
Over half of irregular migrants who arrived in Malta in 2022 reportedly came from Asian countries. Maltese Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri said they originated from places where "no war was taking place".
The crew of the Geo Barents rescue ship completed the disembarkation of the 73 rescued migrants in the Italian port of Ancona on Thursday. The ship is the second NGO ship to dock in the port this week.
Sea rescue NGOs and Italian Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi have clashed after the arrival in the port of Ancona of the migrant-rescue vessel Ocean Viking with 37 migrants on board.
The charity rescue ship Ocean Viking has set sail for its first mission in 2023. On board, the crew is coming to grips with a new Italian law restricting their ability to rescue people in distress at sea. Frey Lindsay reports for InfoMigrants.
On December 31st, in the presence of dozens of police, coast guard officials and medics, the Ocean Viking rescue ship disembarked the last of 113 migrants at the port of Ravenna in northern Italy. Frey Lindsay reports for InfoMigrants.
The Italian region of Emilia-Romagna is getting ready to welcome and offer shelter to the 113 migrants on board the Ocean Viking NGO ship - after a gruelling four-day journey up the Adriatic Sea, imposed by Italian authorities.
SOS Mediterranee estimates it could take "four long days" for the 113 rescued migrants on Ocean Viking to reach the Italian port city of Ravenna. Pregnant women, three babies and dozens of unaccompanied minors are on board.
The humanitarian ship Ocean Viking docked in the French military port of Toulon on Friday with 230 migrants on board after three weeks at sea. France slammed Italy for its refusal to accept the vessel and suspended a migrant deal as a result.
The Ocean Viking rescue ship will be allowed to land in Toulon, southern France. This was announced by the French interior ministry on Thursday morning. Tensions between France and Italy had grown after the NGO rescue vessel with 234 migrants was refused port by Italy and deferred to France. Paris called the tactics used by the Italian government "unacceptable."
The crew of the Geo Barents carried out four separate rescue operations in the central Mediterranean on Thursday. The NGO ship now has 268 migrants on board.