The new far-right government of Italy has barred 35 men from disembarking from a ship of migrants that have been demanding access to an Italian port for two weeks.
Sicily permitted minors and those with medical concerns to disembark.
The Humanity 1 was one of four migrant vessels awaiting authorization to dock in Italy.
Giorgia Meloni, the next prime minister of Italy, has pledged to crack down on migrants crossing the Mediterranean from North Africa.
Italy is one of the main entry sites into Europe, and according to the United Nations, 85,000 migrants have landed on boats since the beginning of the year.
During their journey, many migrants set sail in small boats and are rescued by charity vessels.
On Sunday morning, 144 people were permitted to disembark the German-flagged vessel Humanity 1, carrying a total of 144 passengers.
Matteo Piantedosi, the Italian minister of the interior, stated that individuals who did not “qualify” as vulnerable would have to leave Italian seas and be cared for by the “flag state.”
Petra Krischok of SOS Humanity told the AFP news agency that a migrant just had a nervous breakdown.
The charity asserts that preventing those in need from disembarking violates international law.
Three further ships carrying approximately 900 people have also requested access to an Italian port but have not yet been granted permission to dock.
In her first address to parliament, the new prime minister of Italy placed migration at the center of her government’s agenda.
Ms. Meloni stated, “We must prohibit unlawful departures and human trafficking,” but emphasized that she had no intention of “calling into question the right to asylum for individuals escaping wars and persecutions.”
In a recent interview, she stated that the country of registration is responsible for the migrants on board; otherwise, the ship is a “pirate ship.”
Ms. Meloni is the leader of the Brothers of Italy party, which has its origins in Italian fascism during World War II and has risen to power as the head of a coalition that includes the far-right League and Silvio Berlusconi’s center-right Forza Italia.
