“Two children died and one person is dispersed after on Monday a boat turned upside down during the rescue in the Sar Tunisina area by a mercantile”. This is the complaint that the NGO Sea Watch, which entrusts to its social channels.
“We immediately asked for help. Frontex arrived late”
According to what is reported, on Monday the plane of the NGO Seabird identified a boat in difficulty with over 90 people on board, including two in the water. Sea Watch – whose fast ship is blocked by the Italian authorities in Lampedusa – asked the competent authorities for help to intervene with immediate rescue. “We immediately asked for help. Frontex arrived six hours later, saw the boat and went away.”
European rescue ships could have reached them in about three hours, but they chose not to intervene, tells the NGO. When the merchant ship Port Fukuka, who was nearby, tried to help them, the boat turned upside down. All the people on board ended up at sea. Once rescued, the operators realized that two children had died and one person was dispersed.
Now, those people are still on board the mercantile who, however, cannot get permission to reach Italy. “There is the imminent danger that the so -called Libyan Coast Guard leads them to Libya”, denounces the NGO, according to which their Aurora ship could have intervened, but – concludes Sea Watch – “is blocked by the Italian authorities in Lampedusa with reasons without foundation”.
