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After a forced break of six months, the German rescue ship "Alan Kurdi" is temporarily allowed to sail again.
The Regensburg aid organization Sea-Eye, which owns the ship, announced this on Sunday.
The Italian coast guard arrested the "Alan Kurdi" in October in the port of Olbia on Sardinia due to alleged technical defects, after the crew had taken in 133 migrants in the Mediterranean.
Sea-Eye had sued in an urgent procedure against the determination.
According to the association, an Italian administrative court in Cagliari decided on Friday that the ship could no longer be detained.
Sea-Eye could suffer “severe financial damage” and “further damage of a complex nature” if the ship is not allowed to be brought to Spain in time for its two-year inspection and planned maintenance.
However, the court decision is not yet final.
The hearing in the main matter, at which the legality of the determination will be decided, is to take place on November 3, 2021.
According to the information, representatives of the Italian Ministry of Transport are campaigning for stricter rules and higher technical requirements for rescue ships in court.
Sea-Eye chairman Isler said the Italian authorities apparently assumed "that it would be difficult for us to meet the requirements".
Both German and Spanish authorities and an internationally recognized ship classification society had previously certified the "Alan Kurdi" as having the necessary ship safety.
"The procedure is not yet over"
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Italy has already checked various private ships in ports several times and stopped them for a long time due to alleged security deficiencies.
Sea-Eye accused the Italian government of wanting to "systematically inhibit" sea rescue in the Mediterranean.
The establishment of rescue ships by Italy was "irresponsible because it is exclusively politically motivated," said Isler.
In addition, it means a high financial burden for Sea-Eye, since there must still be a crew on the ship.
“This is an interim success;
the process is not yet over ”, explained the Sea-Eye chairman Gorden Isler.
The "Alan Kurdi" is now being prepared for the crossing to Spain in order to carry out planned maintenance work, "Sea-Eye" said.
When exactly the ship will leave is not yet certain, said Isler.
The aid organization wants to send another ship called "Sea-Eye 4" in April, in which the church-initiated alliance "United4Rescue" is involved, said Isler.
The Sea-Eye association, which was founded in Regensburg in 2015, has more than a thousand volunteers and has now taken in more than 15,000 people in the Mediterranean.