2 aid groups seek Italy port as Banksy’s migrant boat docks

ROME (AP) — Two aid groups that rescued more than 500 people from the Mediterranean are seeking a port to disembark their passengers. The new rescues come a month after Italy and France got into a diplomatic standoff over the fate of the Ocean Viking and its 234 migrants. Once again, European-flagged rescue ships chartered by European aid groups are waiting for permission to dock. Already, the German-flagged Louise Michel, funded and decorated by the street artist Banksy, disembarked its 33 passengers on the small island of Lampedusa, Sicily amid bad weather. The Geo Berents and the Humanity 1 are currently off Sicily seeking port. Their requests pose a challenge to the Italian government, which has vowed to crack down on migration smugglers.