Persons onboard Open Arms disembark in Pozzallo

A boat run by Spanish charity Open Arms that had been repeatedly denied permission to dock by both Italy and Malta was granted permission late on Saturday to enter the Sicilian port of Pozzallo.

The disembarking process took longer than normal in view of the prolonged verification process following the ‘state of emergency’ declared by the Italian government in relation to the Coronavirus, though unrelated to migration.

Earlier on Saturday, the charity said it only had food for another two days as it remained stranded in the Mediteranean with 363 rescued migrants and refugees on board.

Italian media outlet Rai later reported that they would be distributed across the EU, as laid out in an EU agreement on settling migrants and refugees rescued in the Mediterranean.

Via ANSA / Euronews