The fate of dozens of migrants, whose ship was most likely sunk off the coast of Malta, is a matter of great concern to international organizations and non-governmental organizations.
Earlier yesterday, Frontex spotted four inflatable boats, one of which had capsized and "we assume it sank while people were on board," Sea-Watch International said via Twitter.
"Europe has abandoned them. To die at Easter. "Once again," added the group, which has been expressing concern since Saturday about what happened to the 250 migrants aboard the four boats.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) have been unable to confirm or deny the shipwreck.
"We are very worried. It appears that at least one boat has capsized and is no longer in contact with another. "But we do not have confirmation from the authorities," Carlota Sami, a spokeswoman for the UNHCR in Italy, told AFP. "The coronavirus crisis cannot make it less imperative to provide assistance to shipwrecks," he added.
Flavio Di Giacomo, a spokesman for IOM, explained that because there were no other boats sailing in the area, "it is difficult at this time to confirm whether there was a shipwreck and how many people were killed." "The information that is circulating is very worrying. "And unfortunately, from our experience, we consider it possible that there were shipwrecks about which we do not know anything", he stressed.
A German non-governmental organization, United4Rescue, assured that the people aboard the boat "asked for help over the phone". Its spokesman, Joachim Lenz, said there were probably dozens dead.
When asked by Agence France-Presse, Frontex declined to comment. There is currently no reaction from the Maltese authorities or the Italian port authorities.
Meanwhile, about 150 migrants rescued by Alan Kurdi, the ship of the German humanitarian organization Sea-Eye, will be transferred to another ship last Monday and quarantined to confirm that they have not been infected with the coronavirus. announced yesterday Sunday the Ministry of Transport of Italy.
The Italian government says it cannot accommodate migrants rescued by the ship because they may be SARS-CoV-2 carriers.
The migrants will be transferred to another boat "in the next few hours" with "the technical support of the [Italian] Coast Guard", the Ministry of Transport said.
After their transfer is completed, they will be examined by the Italian Red Cross and Italian doctors. The tests cannot be carried out in an Italian port due to the ongoing crisis caused by the pandemic, according to a press release issued by the ministry.
As explained in the text, the Italian authorities are under "great pressure", from an "organizational and health" point of view, because of the pandemic.
Rome has urged Berlin to accept immigrants, citing the fact that Alan Kurdi is sailing under the German flag. But the Transport Ministry said the ship's crew ruled out the possibility.
One of the 150 migrants rescued last week was picked up by the Italian Coast Guard on Friday because he had a health problem. The remaining 149 remained on Alan Kurdi.
Source: RES-EAP