EU countries receive migrants from ships

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte says that France, Germany, Romania, Portugal, Spain and Luxembourg have agreed to receive the migrants who are on board the ship, and that they should be distributed among the countries, reports Reuters.

Currently, 147 migrants are on board the Open Arms after being rescued on their way across the Mediterranean from North Africa to the EU two weeks ago, the organization behind Open Arms, Proactiva Open Arms, writes on Twitter.

The ship has been able to enter Italian waters and lies at anchor outside Lampedusa since a Rome court overturned a ban issued by Italy's right-wing nationalist Interior Minister Matteo Salvini.

"They know that there is still no harbor for them, but it calms them to see the mainland," Open Arms writes in a statement.

The founder of the organization has previously said that it will request medical evacuation of all migrants on board as soon as the vessel is in Italian waters.

Actor Richard Gere visited Open Arms last Friday and distributed food and water to show his support for the crew and migrants on board.

On Thursday, Salvini issued a new decree to try to stop the ship, but it was blocked by Defense Minister Elisabetta Trenta of the Five Star Movement, which is part of the coalition government together with Salvini's party Lega, writes AFP.

"I made the decision on a firm legal basis, and listened to my conscience," Trenta says in a statement.

Trenta's decision reflects the fact that the Five Star Movement has less reason than before to keep up well with Lega since Salvini flagged for Italy to go for new elections.

Attempts to prevent rescue vessels from entering Italian ports have become a matter of principle for the immigration-critical Matteo Salvini since he took office last June. Last week, the Italian Senate approved a government decree that shocks the maximum fine for vessels illegally entering Italian waters from EUR 50,000 to EUR 1 million - equivalent to almost SEK 11 million. The decree also means that the authorities can seize the vessels.

Another rescue vessel, the Norwegian-flagged Ocean Viking, is on the Mediterranean with more than 350 people on board waiting for permission to enter port in an EU country. Almost a third of them are minors, says SOS Mediterranée, who operates the vessel.