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WORLD NEWS Monday 19 august 2019
Migrants jump off rescue boat to try to reach Italian island

By FRANCES D'EMILIO migrants aboard between
Associated Press Malta and Lampedusa
ROME (AP) — Several mi- and other tiny Italian island,
grants jumped into the sea Linosa, awaiting assign-
from a Spanish rescue boat ment of a safe port. Salvini
Sunday in a thwarted bid to vowed to block that ship,
reach shore in Italy, where too.
the government's hard-line "Whoever hangs tough
interior minister, Matteo Sal- wins," Salvini said. "In Italy
vini, has refused to let the there's no place for traffick-
107 passengers disembark. ers."
"We have been warning Open Arms carried out its
for days, desperation has first rescue of this group 17
its limits," said Open Arms days earlier, plucking mi-
founder Oscar Camps, who grants to safety from smug-
released a video showing glers' unseaworthy dinghies
four migrants wearing or- off Libya.
ange life vests swimming Seeking to break the stand-
toward Lampedusa island. off, Spain on Sunday of-
Crew members from the fered a far southern port,
humanitarian group's ship Algeciras, just west of Gi-
swam quickly toward them braltar, to Open Arms, even
so they could be brought while acknowledging that
back aboard. Migrants stand on the deck of the Open Arms Spanish humanitarian boat off the coast of the the harbor is distant and
In the evening, Open Arms Sicilian island of Lampedusa, southern Italy, Sunday, Aug.18, 2019. unsuitable to disembark so
urgently requested per- Associated Press many migrants.q
mission to enter Lampe- be absurd to undertake a
dusa's port so the migrants, journey, that could take
aboard for 17 days, could perhaps a week, with the
finally get off. It said their migrants. For days, Open
psychological and physical Arms has been anchored
conditions are "at risk." off Lampedusa, a fishing
"If the worst happens, Eu- and vacation island be-
rope and Salvini will be re- tween Sicily and northern
sponsible," the charity said Africa. The boat initially had
in a tweet. 147 migrants aboard when
In its formal request made it reached Italian waters.
by the boat's captain, In the last few days, 40 mi-
Marc Reig Creus, Open grants have transferred by
Arms also offered an alter- Italian coast guard vessels
native solution: to transfer to Lampedusa, including a
the 107 onto another, "ad- few who were ailing and 27
equate" ship that could believed to be minors.
swiftly reach the Spanish After the migrants who had
port of Algeciras, where jumped from the ship were
Spain has said the migrants back aboard, several fe-
could disembark, given the male migrants wailed or
dramatic situation of pas- pressed their hands to their
sengers and crew. head as if in disbelief. A
Open Arms told Italian few of the male migrants
authorities including pros- could be seen gesturing
ecutors that the situation and shouting angrily, while
aboard "has become un- crew members tried to
manageable," adding that calm tempers.
the migrants are "prey to With Salvini challenging the
frequent anxiety and panic survival of Italy's populist
attacks." government in a push for
Salvini has denied dock- an early election he hopes
ing permission because he will give him the premier-
contends charity rescue ship, the minister is harden-
boats essentially facilitate ing his already-stiff resolve
the smuggling of migrants to keep humanitarian ships
from the traffickers' base in from bringing rescued mi-
Libya. Salvini's resolve has grants to Italy. His League's
seen previous similar stand- party blames migrants for
offs end with disembarka- crime, and its popular-
tion either ultimately taking ity among voters has been
place in Italy or elsewhere soaring.
in Europe. A Norwegian-flagged ship,
On Sunday, Spain offered Ocean Viking, operated
one of its ports for the mi- by two French humanitari-
grants to come ashore, but an groups, has been sailing
Open Arms said it would for days with 356 rescued