Italy directs NGO rescue ship with 89 migrants to port

MILAN (AP) — The German humanitarian group Mission Lifeline says that Italy has directed its migrant rescue ship with 89 people on board to proceed to the port of Reggio Calabria. The 25-meter (80-foot) ship Rise Above entered Italian waters over the weekend without consent because of storm-swollen seas after rescuing 95 people in the central Mediterranean. Six were evacuated at sea due to medical emergencies. Mission Lifeline spokeswoman Hermine Poschmann expressed relief that “waiting on the high seas is over” and said she expects Italy to give the migrants access to asylum procedures and that people can disembark as soon as possible. Italy is taking a hard line with NGO rescue ships and allowing only those it deems vulnerable to disembark.