After a week of waiting, the private organization SOS Méditerranée has been allowed to bring almost 380 people rescued in the central Mediterranean to Italy. The Italian authorities had assigned the ship Ocean Viking to the port of Salerno south of Naples, the NGO reported on Twitter on Sunday.
The crew had previously rescued the migrants from distress at sea several times. The Geo Barentsers of Doctors Without Borders, on the other hand, waited for a safe harbor on Sunday afternoon with about 660 rescued people on board. Rescuers said there were more than 150 minors on board.
The German organization Sea-Watch has meanwhile brought more than 440 rescued migrants to Taranto. Italy had already assigned the Sea-Watch 3 to the port on the Italian boot heel on Thursday, but according to the organization it took the ship almost two days to get there, so the migrants could not land until Saturday.
Especially in summer, many people leave the coasts of North Africa in often unseaworthy boats for the EU and often end up in distress. One of the possible destinations is Italy. In the past three years, the Italian Ministry of the Interior recorded the highest annual number of boat migrant arrivals in July.
Number of arrivals increased significantly
Nearly 39,300 migrants have arrived in the Mediterranean country since Friday this year. In the same period last year there were about 28,450. Since April, the number of arrivals has risen sharply compared to previous years. Migration is a major issue in Italy’s current election campaign. Right-wing parties accuse sea rescuers of collaborating with smugglers
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
