The Alan Kurdi vessel operated by a German NGO on Monday rescued another 44 migrants in Mediterranean Sea, who would be transferred to Malta later, Trend reports citing Xinhua.
“Our crew on board Alan Kurdi saved 44 people from a wooden boat with the assistance of the Maltese authorities. The Maltese fleet sent a vessel to pick up people from Alan Kurdi and take them to the shore,” the German NGO Sea-Eye said on Twitter.
A group of 65 migrants rescued by the same vessel were transferred to an Armed Forces of Malta patrol boat and disembarked at the army’s Hay Wharf base late Sunday evening.
In a statement, the Maltese government said that an agreement was reached following talks with the European Commission and Germany, and the migrants on Alan Kurdi vessel would be transferred to one of its patrol boats of Armed Forces of Malta and brought to Malta.
“All rescued persons on board will be immediately relocated to other European Union (EU) member states. None of the said immigrants will remain in Malta as this case was not under the responsibility of the Maltese authorities,” the statement said.
Sea-Eye reported that three individuals among the 65 migrants required medical attention as they collapsed due to the heat.
The Maltese and Italian foreign ministers issued a joint statement on Sunday evening calling for a permanent EU mechanism to deal with the migration issue.
The foreign ministers of Italy and Malta, Enzo Moavero and Carmelo Abela, confirmed their willingness to cooperate with each other on migration, saying that they asked for a specific agenda item to be added on the next EU Foreign Affairs Council’s agenda.
“It is no longer permissible to proceed on a case by case basis and seek solutions in emergencies with growing political difficulties and very serious hardships,” the ministers said, referring to the ad hoc agreements reached on various cases over the past year.
