The 156 people rescued will be transferred to a Coast Guard boat

Italy to quarantine Alan Kurdi's migrant boat

AFP PHOTO/SEA-EYE.ORG/Cedric FETTOUCHE - NGO members in a rubber boat during an operation to rescue people from a small wooden boat in distress off the Libyan coast, before putting them on board their ship Alan Kurdi

EFE

12 de abril de 2020 (12:56 h.)

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The Italian Ministry of Transport ordered that the 156 migrants rescued by the Alan Kurdi ship of the German NGO Sea-Eye be transferred to a Coast Guard ship for quarantine because the ports are currently closed due to the emergence of the coronavirus.

While Alarm Phone, a phone line set up by activists that receives calls from migrants in danger in the central Mediterranean, warned that there are four boats adrift in the area with about 250 migrants.

In recent hours, they said, they have kept in touch with two boats, with 47 and 55 people respectively, while they have lost contact with two others that had reported and had 47 and 55 other migrants on board.

The Ministry of Transport explained in a statement that in collaboration with Civil Protection this intervention has been arranged "which became necessary after Alan Kurdi's refusal to follow the procedure for reception in his flag country, Germany".

The NGO had reported that conditions on board were not ideal and there was a lack of food and medicine for the 156 rescued and they asked the Italian authorities for help.

"The provision foresees the identification, with the technical support of the Coast Guard, of a boat on which, in the next few hours, the migrants can be transferred for quarantine and checks by the Italian Red Cross and local health authorities".

The Italian Ministry of Transport explained that "the humanitarian intervention cannot take place with the disembarkation in the Italian ports, due to the strong organizational and sanitary pressure in this emergency phase of the COVID-19" and that in this way it is carried out "in total conformity with the regulations in force for the Italians in Italy and for the Italians who repatriate; as well as following the Declaration on the Italian ports in accordance with the Hamburg Convention".

Malta and Italy have reported that their ports are closed to the disembarkation of migrants in order to respect the emergency measures for the coronavirus pandemic.