Charlie Smith
A BOAT carrying 300 migrants docked in Spain this morning after being refused entry twice into Europe.
Operated by Spanish charity NGO Proactiva Open Arms, the vessel docked in Algeciras at 9:00am on Friday after a week at sea.
The mainly African migrants were rescued on December 21, but were told they could not enter Italy or Malta.
The 19 different nationalities onboard the ship, including 139 children, were all met by Red Cross officials who offered them food, clothes and medical examinations if they needed it.
“These are people, both children and adults, who have had really horrible experiences in both their countries of origin and during their journey,” said Vicente Raimundo, a director at Save The Children.
Video showed the spirit of the migrants who celebrated Christmas at sea by singing and listening to music.
Police will identify the migrants before moving them to shelters, and so far the Red Cross have recorded people from the Ivory Coast, Mali, Somalia and Sudan.
It comes as Italy’s far-right interior minister Matteo Salvini said: “My answer is clear: Italian ports are closed, for human traffickers and those who help them, the party is over.”
Over 2,200 migrants have died this year trying to cross the Mediterranean, while 119,336 have reached Europe, according to the UN.
