On Monday, March 11, the migrant rescue vessel Geo Barents docked in the port city of Genoa, Liguria, carrying 129 migrants. Some passengers were disembarked in Civitavecchia, Lazio. Among them were vulnerable women, men, and several very young children.
The latest rescue operation carried out by the Geo Barents search-and-rescue vessel operated by Doctors Without Borders (MSF) ended on March 11 with its arrival in the northwestern port city of Genoa with 129 migrants on board.
On March 7, the Geo Barents rescued 261 people from two overcrowded wooden boats. The survivors, including several women and children, were of 12 different nationalities and had left the previous night from the coast of Libya.
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Eighth time the Geo Barents docks in Liguria in over a year
The Red Cross has set up a hosting facility for the 129 migrants who remained on the Geo Barents after it reached the port of Civitavecchia, chosen by Italian authorities as the destination for the disembarkation of the first group of rescued passengers.
It is the eighth time a vessel operated by MSF has entered a port in Liguria. The first disembarkation, over a year ago, was in La Spezia. With this latest arrival, over 900 migrants have reached Liguria. Many have been relocated to other regions.
MSF has complained about "senseless multiple disembarkations", recalling that, "under international law, everything should be done to 'reduce as much as possible the time spent by rescued people on the ship that assists them'. When will it be time to put humanity in first place?", wondered the medical charity.
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MSF denounces choice of far-away ports and 'inhuman policies'
MSF criticized Italian authorities last week for ordering the rescued migrants' disembarkation in two distant ports. It said that the choice of two ports and the fact that they are "so distant" implied "duplicating maneuvers, diminishing efficiency and increasing costs, as well as inflicting further suffering on these people who instead need protection and aid," the president of MSF Italia, Monica Minardi, denounced in a video posted on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
Minardi highlighted the lengthy transit time between Civitavecchia and Genoa compared to sea travel, impacting the Geo Barents' availability for potential rescues in the Central Mediterranean. She condemned the EU and Italy's policies, asserting that survivors bear the brunt of inhumanity.