Prime Minister Publishes Charter Flight Photo To Prove Migrants Are Being Relocated From Malta
Prime Minister Joseph Muscat has published a photo of a group of migrants departing Malta on a charter flight to Germany to prove EU countries are indeed relocating migrants from the island.
“Thanks to Germany for continuing to honour its pledges taking migrants brought to Malta as part of European ad hoc agreements,” he tweeted.
Thanks to #Germany for continuing to honour its pledges taking #migrants brought to #Malta as part of European ad hoc agreements -JM pic.twitter.com/tuc2vzSS9B
— Joseph Muscat (@JosephMuscat_JM) August 27, 2019
The people being relocated to Germany are part of a group of 65 migrants who entered Malta last July after they were picked up in the Mediterranean by the Alan Kurdi, a search-and-rescue vessel operated by the German NGO Sea Eye.
After Italy shut its ports to migrant search-and-rescue NGOs, Malta adopted a strategy of only allowing NGOs to bring migrants over if other EU countries agree to relocate them once they land.
Last week, Malta agreed to take in 365 migrants who had been stranded on board the NGO-run vessel Ocean Viking for two weeks, after six EU countries (France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Portugal and Romania) agreed to take them in.
However, a number of online commenters have cast doubt on whether the migrants are actually being relocated once they land, doubts the Prime Minister’s photo are meant to assuage.