Two more migrant ship standoffs in Med

(ANSA) - Rome, July 5 - Friday saw two more migrant rescue ship standoffs in the Mediterranean after the 17-day case of the Sea-Watch3 whose skipper was cleared of ramming a police boat in Lampedusa earlier this week.
    The Italian NGO Mediterranea Saving Humans' Alex migrant rescue ship carrying 54 migrants rescued off Libya Thursday has been stopped off Lampedusa according to a landing ban issued by Interior Minister Matteo Salvini, sources said Friday.
    Salvini said the ship must go to Malta or else it "will be an act of violence".
    Malta offered a port to the ship but the Mediterranea at first said this was "unfeasible".
    It said because of the physical and psychological conditions of the migrants it was unable to go that far out of its way.
    However, Alessandra Sciurba, spokesman of Mediterranea Saving Humans, later said it was ready to offload the migrants at Malta.
    It was reported that a Maltese navy ship was heading for the Mediterranea to take the migrants, but the NGO said that "no ship is on the way, sadly".
    The Italian navy later offered to take the Alex's migrants to Malta. And the first 13 "vulnerable" individuals including women and children and their families were taken aboard a Coast Guard cutter.
    The Maltese government said Italy would take 55 migrants off its hands in exchange for the 54 migrants Malta would take from the Mediterranea ship.
    Deputy Premier Luigi Di Maio said it was right that the ship should go to Malta.
    He said NGOs that used sailboats like the Mediterranea were "reckless".
    Meanwhile The 'Alan Kurdi' migrant rescue ship run by German NGO Sea-Eye rescued 65 migrants off Libya.
    It said it was now awaiting a response to landing requests from Malta, Rome and Tripoli.
    A woman journalist was aboard the migrant dinghy.
    Salvini said the Sea-Eye "can choose between Tunisia and Germany".
    "Anyone who defends the borders and security of my country is welcome," he said.
    He added that the Alex, with its 54 migrants, was going to Malta.
    A safe port is also needed for the Alan Kurdi with its 65 rescued migrants, German government spokeswoman Martina Fiez said Friday.
    She said saving migrants at sea was a European task, as was the redistribution of migrants.
    Meanwhile the head of the Italian magistrates union, the ANM, said Salvini should explain where the judge who released the Sea-Watch3 skipper, judging her innocent of ramming a police boat, went wrong.
    Preliminary investigations judge Alessandra Vella released Carola Rackete saying she had acted properly in saving migrants at risk of drowning and had not deliberately rammed the Guardia di Finanza boat.
    Salvini called Vella's ruling "disgraceful" and said she should stand for election if she wanted to make such "political" decisions.
    ANM chief Luca Poniz said Friday "Salvini is fully entitled to criticise a decision by the magistrature but he must explain why it is wrong and we still haven't heard one reason why that decision was wrong".
    Salvini retorted by saying "I have no enemies, only allies for the defence of the legality, security and welfare of my country.
    "And trying to kill Italian (police) is not something that can remain unpunished".
    Rackete responded Friday by saying she would sue Salvini for instigating hatred and crimes, after she received rape threats on social media.
    "I'm not scared of a rich Communist," retorted Salvini.
    Rackete says in an interview to be published by Der Spiegel Saturday that Salvini breached human rights with his policy of closing ports to NGO run migrant rescue ships.
    "Salvini's policy violated human rights: his way of expressing himself is disrespectful, it is not appropriate for a high-level politician," she said after the minister branded her a "scamp".
    The crew of the Sea-Watch3, she added, sent daily medical reports on the condition of the 42 rescued migrants, also to the Italian rescue centre in Rome, "but no one listened, no one responded".