German charity Sea-Watch reported rescuing 65 migrants in distress off Libya on Wednesday, sparking an immediate warning from Rome to stay away from Italian waters. The Dutch-flagged Sea-Watch 3 had found the migrants, including 11 women, two babies, 13 children and a handicapped person in international waters some 30 nautical miles off the coast of Libya. In Rome, far-right Interior Minister Matteo Salvini issued a snap directive banning the Sea Watch vessel from entering Italian territorial waters, saying "our ports are and remain closed". Sea-Watch 3 went on to Marseille in France and ended up blocked in the port for three months as it battled attempts in the Netherlands to limit its work. Charity ships have drawn fire from Rome by attempting on occasion to stop migrants being taken back to crisis-hit Libya, which human rights organisations say is not safe for repatriations

Source: Libya Today May 15, 2019 18:45 UTC