30 migrants arrive in Italy, minister sequesters aid ship

Rescued migrants desembark from the Mare Jonio rescue ship of the Italian NGO Mediterranea Saving Humans as it docked at the port of the Italian island of Lampedusa, southern Italy, Friday, May 10, 2019. According to Mediterranea Saving Humans, some 30 migrants, including two pregnant women and a small child, were rescued a day earlier off the Libyan coast. (Elio Desiderio/ANSA via AP)

ROME – Italy's interior minister says an Italian-flagged migrant rescue ship has been sequestered after it brought 30 migrants to Italy who had been rescued at sea.

The head of the Mediterranea Saving Humans group, Luca Casarini, said he hadn't received any notification that the Mare Jonio had been seized by authorities after its 30 migrants came ashore Friday on the southern Italian island of Lampedusa. The migrants included two pregnant women and a small child.

Interior Minister Matteo Salvini declared in a tweet that it was the "last trip" for the ship, saying it had been "blocked and sequestered."

Salvini, head of the right-wing League party, has declared Italy's ports closed to aid groups that rescue migrants at sea. His hard-line campaign has greatly reduced the number of people arriving in Italy this year.