Six EU Nations To Take Migrants From Open Arms Rescue Ship Stranded Near Italy - Conte

Six EU countries have agreed to take in migrants stranded aboard the Open Arms ship off Italy's coast, its prime minister said in an open letter published Thursday

ROME (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 15th August, 2019) Six EU countries have agreed to take in migrants stranded aboard the Open Arms ship off Italy's coast, its prime minister said in an open letter published Thursday.

The ship with 147 migrants, mainly from Africa, picked in the Mediterranean spent 13 days at sea before an Italian court let it enter the national waters on Wednesday, defying Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini's ban on migrant rescue ships.

"France, Germany, Romania, Portugal, Spain and Luxembourg have just informed me that they are willing to redistribute migrants.

Once again, my European counterparts reach out to us," Giuseppe Conte wrote in a letter addressed to Salvini.

The ship has been anchored near the Italian island of Lampedusa. Salvini said he would challenge the ruling and asked Defense Minister Elisabetta Trenta to countersign a fresh decree banning the migrants on board the Spanish ship from disembarking in Italy, which she refused.