Italy to take some migrants from stranded ship

Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte says Italy will take some of the migrants onboard the rescue ship run by the German group Mission Lifeline, which has been stranded near Malta for days.

Conte said in a statement Tuesday that he made the pledge in a call to the prime minister of Malta. He added that he hoped that other EU countries would follow suit.

The Lifeline has been stranded in international waters some 25 miles from the coast of Malta for days, after both Italy and Malta refused to allow it to dock in their ports. Both countries underlined that the ship had acted improperly by not following the orders of the Italian command center directing rescues at sea.

More than 200 migrants are on board the ship. The impasse came after a similar standoff over another private rescue boat, the Aquarius.

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