On Monday (January 13), the migrant rescue vessel Ocean Viking operated by the NGO SOS Mediterranée reached the Puglia port of Taranto with 101 migrants on board. The migrants were rescued on January 10 in the Mediterranean on board a wooden boat in the Libyan Search and Rescue zone.

The group -- including 29 women and 23 minors -- mostly coming from sub-Saharan African countries, have disembarked, the organization confirmed.

Despite the difficult weather conditions with high seas and waves of up to 2.5 meters, the migrants were reported to be in a good condition.

Operations at the quayside were coordinated by Taranto's prefecture.

After identification procedures and medical checkups, the migrants will be sent to other destinations.

The migrants include 32 Somalis, 26 Syrians, 15 Eritreans, 13 Egyptians, six Palestinians, three Sudanese, two Iraqis and an Ethiopian, stated SOS Mediterranée.

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Disembarkation port changed

Initially, the Italian authorities told the Ocean Viking crew to sail to Ravenna to disembark the group. However, the decision was opposed by the NGO for geographical reasons. "The assignation of a port so far away would force people searching for security to endure a four-day-long journey in high seas. We urge Italian authorities to assign a port that is closer", Sos Méditerranée said in an appeal.

Authorities subsequently assigned Taranto as a safe port of destination. The NGO had hoped to be assigned a port in Sicily, which was even closer to its location, but the request was rejected:

"I am speaking from the deck of the Ocean Viking ship; we are proceeding towards Taranto to disembark the shipwrecked people but, along the way, we will have to deal with extremely bad weather including four-meter-high waves and rain. We ask Italian authorities for a closer port of disembarkation which we have so far been denied", stated the team coordinator on board, Lucille Guenier, after rescuing the migrants.

At the time she spoke, the Ocean Viking had been sailing along the eastern coast of Sicily. "Many children are among the survivors, including a one-year-old child. They are all suffering due to the adverse weather conditions, many of them have already suffered in Libya", she insisted.

Their appeal to dock in Sicily though continued to be denied, and the Ocean Viking arrived in Taranto on Monday to complete the disembarkation.