“A total of 440 people, including 8 women and 30 children, are now safe on board the Geo Barents,” MSF said on Tuesday.
The Geo Barents, a humanitarian ship of Doctors Without Borders (MSF), rescued 440 migrants in distress on Tuesday on board a boat in international waters off Malta, the NGO announced.
“After more than 11 hours of operation, the rescue is now complete and a total of 440 people, including 8 women and 30 children, are now safe on board the Geo Barents and are being cared for by the team,” said MSF Sea said on Twitter on Wednesday, posting photos of the rescue.
Distress alert
While seeking shelter in the Mediterranean during a storm, the Geo Barents received a distress alert and changed course to provide assistance, the NGO said.
“Unfortunately, the weather conditions did not allow our team to carry out the rescue directly, which could have endangered the lives of people and that of the MSF team,” she said.
“This morning at 4 a.m., after more than 10 hours of sailing in rough seas, our team finally reached the boat in distress,” she added.
In February, the Italian authorities had immobilized the humanitarian ship of MSF, accused of having broken the new rules on the missions to rescue migrants.
Giorgia Meloni, leader of the far-right Fratelli d’Italia party, took over as head of a coalition government in October after promising to reduce the number of migrants arriving in Italy.
