The arrest of three officials of a German aid ship that disembarked 37 Africans on the Sicilian coast provoked an outcry in Italy and Germany today, with politicians and aid groups saying the move violated humanitarian principles.

A German aid ship which has sailed southern Mediterranean waters for three weeks in search of a haven for its passengers, including 36 Sudanese seeking asylum, was blocked by Italian coast guard motorboats from docking at a Sicilian port.

Twelve illegal migrants died early today after the boat they were travelling on took on water as it neared the Sicilian coast.