The 234 men and women that the ship rescued in the Mediterranean are at the heart of a diplomatic showdown between France and Italy, led by the extreme right.
Le Monde with AFP
The General Secretariat of the Sea, attached to the Ministry of the Interior, announced Thursday, November 10, the health evacuation of four people who were on the humanitarian ship Ocean Viking, blocked in the Mediterranean with 234 migrants on board, which is the subject of a showdown between France and Italy.
According to SOS Méditerranée, which charters the boat, these are three migrants and an accompanying person. The Viking Ocean had requested the evacuation of the three passengers, who are “in a serious state of health and need hospital care”, according to the NGO.
“One of the patients is unstable and does not react to the care provided on board since October 27. The other two have suffered injuries in Libya which, due to the long processing time, are now likely to have Long-term negative consequences, “said SOS Méditerranée spokesperson for France-Presse.
off Corsica
The NGO sent its request to the French authorities through the regional operational surveillance and rescue centers (CROSS), and this request was “taken into account”, according to SOS Méditerranée, whose headquarters are in Marseille . The evacuation “will be carried out under the operational leadership of the Admiral Maritime Prefect of the Mediterranean,” confirmed the general secretariat of the sea. The ship is now, according to the Marine Traffic website, off Aléria, in Corsica.
Wednesday, tension had climbed a notch between France and Italy about the Viking Ocean, Paris denouncing the “unacceptable” refusal of Rome to leave the boat to dock. Brussels, for its part, called for the immediate landing of all migrants.