German humanitarian group Sea-Watch blasted the Italian government for blockading a rescue ship with migrants and holding it for 11 hours in the Sicilian port of Palermo as “politically motivated.”
The Sea-Watch 4, headed by Philipp Hahn has called the Italian action’s justification “flimsy”, claiming it is a “systematic move to prevent civil sea rescue operations in the central Mediterranean.”
🔴 SURPRISE: The #SeaWatch4 is blocked! For 11 hours, the inspectors searched for the needle in a haystack – and once again found absurd reasons to detain us. With this arbitrary blockade the @guardiacostiera is deliberately putting human lives at risk! pic.twitter.com/53mLoJ7p4L
— Sea-Watch International (@seawatch_intl) September 19, 2020
According to Italian authorities, the ship was blocked because the vessel was not registered to save lives, had too many lifejackets on board, and its sewage facilities were inadequate to handle a large headcount.
Sea-Watch 4 reportedly rescued 354 people, including 98 unaccompanied minors as well as families with children and pregnant women. The ship reportedly was held off-shore for days awaiting a proper port. Also, the ship had to undergo a two week quarantine period.
