According to an emergency rescue hotline service, more than 60 migrants that have fled Libya, including thirteen women and six children, are stranded in Malta’s search and rescue zone.
The NGO Alarm Phone stated it had received an alert phonecall from a migrant vessel fleeing Libya saying that water had begun to leak into their boat off the Maltese coast.
The organization sent a distress call to the Maltese authorities to launch a search and rescue operation, noting that “searching for and saving these people is a responsibility of the European Union, the Coast Guard, and the Maltese Armed Forces.”
“Authorities are informed. Do not let them drown and starve to death as you did with another migrant group two weeks ago!” the NGO stated.
Alarm Phone claimed it had reached out to the Maltese Armed Forces to relay coordinates. However, according to the NGO, they were allegedly non-responsive to calls and emails.