Spain Offers Alternative Ports to Stranded Open Arms Migrant Rescue Vessel
Spain on Monday suggested to the Open Arms ship that it could take the 107 migrants it rescued at sea to a port on either of the two eastern Balearic Islands after the Spanish charity that runs it turned down a farther option
The ship has been stranded at sea for 18 days after picking up migrants traveling via the Mediterranean Sea toward Europe. It has been anchored off the Italian island of Lampedusa in the hope of docking there despite the country's ban on migrant rescue vessels.
"After Open Arms rejected the offer to dock in Algeciras, the government suggested the Spanish ports of Palma and Mahon as the closest locations," the statement read.
The charity argued it would take the ship five days to sail to the Andalusian port in southern Spain and described the situation on board as critical. Several migrants even jumped ship after learning of that proposal, it said.
An Italian court defied the ban on migrant rescue ships last week to allow the vessel to enter national waters but Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini refused to let them all come ashore after allowing 27 minors to disembark over the weekend.