Doctors Without Borders, the Swiss charity group, has vehemently denied the allegations by Italy that its rescue ship, the Geo Barents, failed to comply with instructions as the organization protested another detainment issue by the Italian Coast Guard.
The rescue vehicle was ordered to be held for 20 days after disembarking its latest group of migrants who were rescued from the Central Mediterranean.
The detention marks the twentieth time a humanitarian search and rescue ship has been detained since a new law was enforced in Italy in early 2023. According to the group, the Geo Barents was operating in the Mediterranean in the middle of March and by March 16, the ship had conducted three rescue missions.
On March 16, the ship conducted three rescue missions. The rescues started with the ship encountering a small fibreglass boat overloaded with 28 distressed people. They then discovered a wooden boat loaded with 146 people. The Geo Barents began a rescue mission when they found the boat was distressed. Soon after they started, the Libyan Coast Guard came on the scene. They said the Libyan Coast Guard patrol vessel tried to stop the rescue. They attempted to board one of the rescue boats and threatened to arrest and take the people being rescued, as well as the MSF staff, to Libya.
Although there was a standoff for about two hours, the vessel was able to rescue the 148 people.
Later that night, they found another fibreglass boat with 75 people on board. Their boat had capsized, and 45 people were in the water. The Geo Barents saved those people. They then had 249 survivors aboard. But the Italians ordered them to sail to Marina Di Carrara in Italy, where the people were disembarked, and the detention order was issued.
Italy charged the Geo Barents with failing to comply with instructions issued by the Libyan Coast Guard. The detention says the Geo Barents team endangered the lines of the survivors during the rescue operation.
MSF responded by accusing the Italian authorities of “systematic collusion” with the Libyan Coast Guard. They are asking the authorities to put an immediate stop to obstructing the NGO’s lifesaving assistance.
