Rescued Migrants Hijack Merchant Ship off Libya
Migrants 'Hijack Merchant Ship That Rescued Them Off of Libya and Are Heading Towards Lampedusa or Malta', Claims Matteo Salvini, Who Vows: 'They'll Only See Italy Through a Telescope'
A merchant ship has been hijacked by migrants after it rescued them in the Mediterranean, according to reports Interior minister Matteo Salvini claimed the ship, a 846-ton tanker named El Hiblu 1, had been bound for Libya after picking up the migrants but had been taken over and turned towards Europe. El Hiblu 1 is registered in the Republic of Palau, an archipelago in the Pacific Ocean. The ship was on its way to Tripoli, the capital of Libya, from Turkey, on Tuesday but six nautical miles from port it was diverted heading for the north to rescue some migrants off the coast https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/03...3713631355.jpg El Hiblu 1, pictured, is a 846-ton tanker registered in the Republic of Palau, an archipelago in the Pacific Ocean Salvini, a hardliner who has repeatedly refused entry to Mediterranean migrants, claimed the ship with 108 migrants on board was now heading for Malta or the Italian island of Lampedusa. Both countries said El Hiblu 1 would not be allowed to enter their national waters. 'We received reports of a pirated ship heading towards Malta or Lampedusa (off Sicily) and we're monitoring the situation,' a Maltese coastguard spokesman told AFP. Migrants in chaos-wracked Libya face trafficking, kidnap, torture and rape, according to the United Nations and aid groups. https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/03...3713686726.jpg Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini, pictured during a live on Facebook, claimed the ship with 108 migrants on board was heading for Malta or the Italian island of Lampedusa At 4pm, there had been no communication from the tanker for 16 hours, Maritime and Crimean Shipping News reported. Refusing to let the migrants into Italy, Salvini tweeted: 'They're not shipwrecked, they're pirates. They should know that they will only see Italy with a telescope.' The Italian news agency ANSA reported that Salvini said: 'It would be the first act of piracy on the high seas, with migrants who have hijacked a ship that had reached six nautical miles [seven miles] off the Libyan coast.' https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/03...3713695029.jpg The ship was on its way to Tripoli, the capital of Lybia, from Turkey, but it changed its direction and started heading north The agency reports that the migrants had realised they were returning towards Tripoli and had threatened the freighter's commander and crew. The reported line echoes Salvini's language last year when he said migrants would only see the country 'on a postcard'. The 46-year-old has spearheaded the migration crackdown since he became interior minister and deputy PM last year. He has turned away rescue ships operated by foreign NGOs, such as the Aquarius, which was left stranded with 630 migrants last June after being refused entry to Italy. https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/03...3701519527.jpg A merchant ship has been hijacked by migrants after it rescued them in the Mediterranean, interior minister Matteo Salvini (pictured today in Rome) has claimed Following Rome's increasingly tough anti-migrant stance, boats that pick up migrants making the perilous journey across the Mediterranean increasingly return them to Libya. Several boatloads of migrants rescued in recent months have refused to disembark in Libya, prompting the authorities there to use force. Migrant arrivals from North Africa and the Middle East have been sharply reduced since a 2015 peak when Europe faced its worst migration crisis since World War II. Salvini has accused the rescue missions of playing into the hands of people smugglers. https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2...4182067855.jpg Pictured: The Aquarius rescue vessel which was turned away by Salvini last June in the populist government's crackdown on Mediterranean crossings He was sworn in after striking deal to form a government with the Five Star Movement, an agreement that brought Italy a populist government after three months of post-election deadlock. On Monday Salvini vowed to 'change Europe' after his League party - which he transformed into a national force - won a regional election. Spain's socialist PM Pedro Sanchez, who also came to power last year, has taken a more liberal approach. Quote:
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