WATCH: Aquarius Docks In Malta With 141 Migrants Aboard As Scores Come Out To Show Support
Photos and video: Robert Farrugia
The humanitarian vessel the MV Aquarius has entered Maltese waters today after the Maltese government brokered an EU-wide deal that saw five other countries pledge to relocate the 141 migrants aboard to their countries.
The ship, carrying fatigued migrants with, among other injuries, various stab and bullet-wounds from their time in detention in Libya, was met by Maltese people who welcomed the tired people.
One group of people even unfurled a huge banner saying “We are saving lives and not meat!” from the bastions, later getting into a small boat and driving alongside the Aquarius with the banner while waving at the people on board. The migrants can be heard clapping and cheering in response.
After it docked, the Armed Forces of Malta assisted in disembarking the migrants for various authorities, including immigration police and health authorities, to begin the process of preparing them to be relocated.
With none of the migrants set to remain in Malta, this could be the beginning of an era in European migration politics where Malta is used as a “logistical base” to welcome and process fleeing refugees and migrants from their countries before relocating them throughout cooperating EU member states.