Ireland is to take in some of the 356 migrants who have stranded on rescue ship for two weeks.
This country is one of six states which have agreed to relocate the migrants who were picked up in the Mediterranean.
Malta had denied the ship entry, and Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said none of the migrants will remain in the country after the transfer operation.
It is still not clear how many of those on board the Ocean Viking vessel will be coming to Ireland.
Yesterday the ship was anchored in international waters between Malta and the southern Italian island of Linosa.
Malta had denied the ship entry, and Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said none of the migrants will remain in the country after the transfer operation.
But yesterday Malta confirmed it will allow 356 migrants aboard the humanitarian ship to disembark after the six European countries agreed to accept all of them.
In a series of tweets, Maltese prime minister Joseph Muscat said the migrants will be transferred from the Ocean Viking to vessels of the country’s armed forces before taking them on shore.
The Norwegian-flagged rescue ship has been sailing between the island of Linosa and Malta.
It was kept of sight of land, fearing that could agitate the traumatised passengers who were becoming aggressive.
Dr Luca Pigozzi, who is on the vessel, said that while most migrants were in a stable physical condition, he feared the impact of psychological damage caused by violence suffered when fleeing their home country.
He added: “The situation on board is becoming more tense.”
Requests for a safe port were previously denied by Malta and ignored by Italy, according to Doctors Without Borders and SOS Mediterranee, the two charities running the ship.
As well as Ireland, the 356 migrants will be distributed to France, Germany, Luxembourg, Portugal and Romania.
The ship is carrying mostly Africans from Sudan, plucked from the sea in four separate missions.
They include more than 100 minors, around 90 of them unaccompanied, Médecins Sans Frontières said.
Three children are under the age of five.
Separately, dozens of migrants were picked up as they attempted to cross the English Channel
In four separate events on the south coast on Thursday, the UK Border Force dealt with a total of 37 people, including six children, who tried to reach England in small boats.
And a fifth incident off the Sussex coast reportedly involved more than 20 others, although the UK Home Office has not confirmed details.
The attempted crossings came on the day that official figures were published on immigration to the UK from the EU.
A Home Office spokeswoman said crossing the Channel in a small boat is a “huge risk” and “the criminal gangs who perpetuate this are ruthless and do not care about loss of life."
