Rescue charity to take Italy to court over migrants . Flag nations of ships to take them, says Italy

1. German charity SOS Humanity says it will go to court to try to overturn efforts by Italy’s new right-wing government to prevent some of the people the nonprofit group had saved from the sea from stepping onto land.

“It is unlawful to allow only some of the survivors ashore,” the charity said on Monday on Twitter.

The non-profit announced its intention to sue as two rescue vessels – the German-flagged Humanity 1 and the Norwegian-flagged Geo Barents – were given permission to dock in Catania, Sicily, at the weekend. They were allowed to let off about 500 migrants, mainly women and children, leaving about 250 still on board.
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2. Germany has urged Italy to help migrants who have been onboard a German-flagged NGO boat for more than a week, saying charity vessels operating in the Mediterranean play an important role in saving lives at sea.

Three ships run by charities, including Germany's SOS Humanity, have been at sea off Italy for more than a week, carrying almost 1,000 migrants.

They said all their requests to dock have so far proved unsuccessful.

Giorgia Meloni, Italy's new rightist prime minister, said the flag nations of the charity ships in question should take care of the migrants currently stranded at sea, after her government threatened to ban them from entering its waters.

German embassy in Rome said there were currently 104 unaccompanied minors on the German-flagged ship Humanity 1.
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3. Three migrants rescued from the Mediterranean and brought to a Sicilian port but then banned from disembarking jumped into the sea in desperation Monday, trapped in a standoff between charity ships and Italy

The Humanity 1, run by German charity SOS Humanity, said it was told by Italian authorities to come to the port of Catania to land minors and people needing medical attention.

But challenged the government’s move to distinguish “vulnerable” refugees and migrants, saying all of the people on board were rescued at sea and that alone qualified them for a safe harbour under international law.

Italian authorities prevented 35 migrants they did not deem vulnerable from getting off the boat in Sicily.
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