Italy to quarantine 147 migrants after 12 days at sea

 Italian authorities have said that a group of 147 migrants who spent 12 days at sea will be quarantined on a ferry off the country's coast.

The migrants on board the Alan Kurdi ship, operated by German charity Sea-Eye, will be transferred to the ferry docked in the Italian port of Palermo, on the island of Sicily, reports eFE NEWS.

They will spend two weeks in isolation on the vessel as a precaution against the coronavirus pandemic before being relocated to various countries in the European Union.

The Aita Mari ship, run by Spanish NGO Salvamento Maritìmo Humanitario (Humanitarian Sea Rescue), with 36 rescued migrants onboard has been asked to sail to Lampedusa to the west of Sicily.

Several people were previously evacuated from the vessel for medical reasons and others were believed to have been transferred to a passenger ferry for quarantine but this had not been confirmed.

Italian authorities have used this method to isolate migrants crossing the Mediterranean after the country closed its ports due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Potential hospitals have also been alerted and prepared in case they need to carry out coronavirus tests or treatment on those on board.

A separate area has also been prepared to isolate potential patients and assistance will be provided by the Red Cross.

The situation aboard the Alan Kurdi had become desperate and several people had been evacuated due to health issues.

On Thursday a man threw himself into the sea in an attempt to swim to the coast and was rescued by a Spanish aid worker.

Several political representatives have called for a solution to deal with the health and humanitarian needs emerging from the pandemic.

German NGO Sea-Watch, Italian organisation Mediterranea and Alarm Phone, a hotline service for migrants in distress at sea, have urged authorities to rescue people at sea amid fears that 12 migrants died as they tried to reach Europe from Libya. IANS