A group of 71 migrants disembarked on Sunday (March 2) in Ravenna, northeastern Italy, from the rescue ship run by the non-governmental organization SOS Humanity.

The majority of the migrants reportedly come from Eritrea (51 persons) and Ethiopia (nine persons). The rest are from Nigeria, The Gambia, Sudan, Cameroon, Benin, the Ivory Coast, Niger, Mali, and Togo.

The group includes 46 men, 16 unaccompanied minors and nine women. Among the people who were rescued were reportedly three families.

The majority of the migrants (50 people) were transferred to nearby Bologna, some 80 kilometers inland from Ravenna; the others will stay in Ravenna.

NGO asked Italy to assign closer port

The local prefect, Raffaele Ricciardi, commented on the arrival, saying: "It was the second boat arrival of Humanity 1, the first having taken place on April 25 2023, for a total of 1,747 migrants arrived at the port of Ravenna. For this I wish to thank all personnel involved in the arrival and shelter for the extraordinary professionalism they showed..."

The migrants had been rescued last Monday (February 24) from a rubber dinghy in the Mediterranean over 1,600 kilometers away from the port of Ravenna.

According to SOS Humanity, "[some] survivors [had] burns caused by fuel; some said they were tortured in Libya and show visible signs of it. Some survivors suffer pulmonary infections."

The NGO had asked Italian authorities to assign them a closer port, citing the mental and physical health of the survivors on board the Humanity 1 and worsening weather conditions, but their request had reportedly not been granted.