Italy has detained in port the immigrant rescue ship Banksy-funded and named after the French anarchist Louise Michel.
Italy has detained a migrant rescue ship, financed by British street artist Banksy, in port.
In the statement made by the Coast Guard, it was stated that the ship, which anchored on Lampedusa Island on Sunday, was not allowed to leave the port on the grounds that it did not comply with the orders.
The ship, named after the French anarchist Louise Michel, carried out an operation to rescue the immigrants on the two boats that sailed from Tunisia at the weekend and sank while trying to reach the Italian coast.
In the statement made by the crew of the non-governmental organization ship (NGO) Louise Michel, it was reported that 34 people were rescued from one of the boats on Saturday in the disaster that killed 29 people.
According to the Coast Guard’s statement, the ship was told to dock at the port of Trapani, Sicily, after this rescue operation. However, it was argued that the crew did not comply with the order and broke the rules by launching 4 more rescue operations, three in Malta and one in Libya, on Sunday.
Under the new rules, which the right-wing government led by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni put into practice in December, ships belonging to NGOs are required to anchor in the port after a rescue operation, before proceeding to another operation.
According to the news in Indepent Turkish, the Coast Guard argued that the ship did not comply with this rule, “making it difficult to coordinate sensitive search and rescue efforts.”
Louise Michel team, on the other hand, argued that the Italian authorities detained their ships without any legal justification, and made the following statements on their Twitter account:
“We know that dozens of boats are in danger right now in front of the island, but we are prevented from helping. This is unacceptable!”
Louise Michel, a former French navy ship, was purchased and started operating in 2020 with the funding provided by Banksy, who is famous for his graffiti works.