The search and rescue vessel, Life Support, disembarked 28 people at the Italian port of Ortona, in the eastern Abruzzo region, on Monday afternoon (August 3).

Italian NGO Emergency, which operates the Life Support boat, said that the rescue took place on Thursday (July 30) in international waters within the Maltese search and rescue (SAR) zone.

According to the humanitarian organization, the ship spent four days at sea before reaching the assigned port.

"We arrived at the port of Ortona after four days at sea," said Jonathan Nanì La Terra, Head of Mission aboard Life Support. "We would like to point out that assigning ports so far away causes further suffering to people who are already in highly vulnerable conditions. We wish the very best for each and every one of them. We are now ready to set sail again for the Central Mediterranean."

Among those rescued were 28 men and boys, including four unaccompanied minors. Emergency said they came from Pakistan, Somalia, Sudan and South Sudan, countries affected by conflict, instability, climate change, and severe economic and humanitarian crises.

'My life has been marked by civil war'

One of the rescued men, originally from South Sudan, described his experience to Emergency staff while on board the vessel.

"My life has always been marked by civil war," he told Emergency staff while on board Life Support.

"Over the years I’ve seen my father and four of my brothers die, killed by this brutal conflict. In 2022, I too was the victim of an armed attack and decided to leave my country for good. I crossed through Sudan and lived in Libya for four years, amid violence, discrimination and detention, attempting several times to reach Europe. I’ve finally made it; I’m here in Italy, primarily in search of protection and safety, and with a very clear aim: to try to transform all the pain I’ve experienced into a message of peace and non-violence," he said.

Emergency said Life Support's 44th mission in the Central Mediterranean was marked by the "constant and significant presence" of Libyan assets, some of them visibly armed, operating in international waters in the Central Mediterranean. The organization said the crew was ordered on several occasions to head north, moving away from the SAR zone.

According to Emergency, this behavior in international waters undermines the ability of rescue vessels to comply with international law and help people whose lives are at risk at sea.

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Since beginning operations in December 2022, Life Support has rescued a total of 3,538 people, according to Emergency.

Data from the Italian Interior Ministry show that 16,666 migrants had disembarked in Italy between January 1 and August 3, 2026, compared with 36,935 during the same period in 2025 and 34,623 in 2024.

Despite the declining number of migrant arrivals, Italy on Tuesday (August 4) proposed the creation of EU-funded migrant return hubs outside the bloc, modelled on its centers in Albania (despite the Italy-Albania migrant centers having proven to be a legal, operational and financial flop).

According to the Italian news agency ANSA, the suggestion was put forward during an emergency meeting of European interior ministers on Tuesday following the arrival of thousands of migrants at Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta last week. Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi is expected to call for a network of centers for the repatriation of irregular migrants, financed by the European Union and located mainly on the African continent, ANSA reported, citing sources.

According to the sources, a preliminary list of potential host countries includes Rwanda, Ghana, Senegal, Tunisia, Libya, Mauritania, Egypt, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Montenegro and Ethiopia.

Italy is also expected to call for the strict implementation of the EU's GSP+ scheme, under which developing countries risk losing trade benefits if they do not cooperate in taking back citizens who are staying irregularly in the European Union. The program was approved earlier this year and is due to enter into force on January 1, 2027.