Hundreds of migrants who have been blocked from disembarking the rescue ship Geo Barents launched a protest on Monday. Holding giant cardboard signs out the ship's portholes, they chanted "Help Us."
The Norway-flagged Geo Barents, carrying 572 migrants, arrived in Catania on Sunday afternoon.
Authorities inspected migrants aboard the ship and allowed minors, families and people with medical issues to disembark - a total of 357 people. The remaining migrants, designated “not vulnerable” were required to stay on board.
The confrontational stance taken by Meloni's government is reminiscent of the standoffs orchestrated by Matteo Salvini, now Meloni's infrastructure minister in charge of ports, during his brief 2018-2019 stint as interior minister.
