Italy stops 35 migrants from getting off rescue ship in port

Italian authorities completed the process of identifying vulnerable migrants on the German-operated Humanity 1 overnight and asked the Geo Barents, with 572 rescued migrants, to proceed on Sunday to the port of Catania for the same vetting.

The SOS Humanity 1 rescue ship run by the German organisation SOS Humanitarian, is seen at sea off the shores of Sicily, near Aci Reale, southern Italy (Salvatore Cavalli/AP)

Italian authorities have prevented 35 migrants they did not deem vulnerable from getting off a boat in Sicily as Italy’s far-right-led government takes a hard line against privately run maritime rescue ships operating in Italian waters.

Humanitarian groups and two Italian legislators who travelled to Sicily protested against the selection process, calling it both illegal and inhumane.