Italian MEP Francesco Enrico Speroni has urged the European Commission to take legal action against Malta over its recent refusal to take ashore 102 migrants rescued at sea by a Turkish tanker ship, the M/V Salamis.

Following a two-day standoff, Italy accepted the migrants on humanitarian grounds.

In a parliamentary question tabled this week, MEP Speroni observed: “The Commissioner for Home Affairs has apparently accused Malta of violating international law by preventing the tanker Salamis from docking.”

He added: “Which international laws were breached and have infringement proceedings been opened as a result? If not, why not?”

At the beginning of August, the Salamis was en route from Libya to Syracuse when it rescued the 102 migrants from the sea. Malta insists that the tanker’s captain had been instructed to return the migrants to the Libyan port of Khmos, arguing that it was the closest safe port of call.

The Salamis ended up anchored 24 nautical miles off the Maltese coast for more than two days after the Maltese government had refused permission for the tanker to enter Maltese waters, insisting that it was acting within international law.

The European Commission had urged Malta to allow the 102 migrant on board the tanker to disembark but the government has insisted that the tanker had no right to enter Maltese territorial waters.

The Commission said that “according to the information available to the Commission, the master of the Salamis has fulfilled his humanitarian duties to save the lives of 102 people on the high sea, amongst them four pregnant women, one injured woman and a five-month-old baby.

“The ship is now closest to Malta and waiting to disembark the rescued people. It is first and foremost important to save the lives of those rescued. Any dispute about the responsible search and rescue authority, including the involvement of the Italian and Libyan authorities, as well as the right place of disembarkation does not help the people in immediate need. These issues should be clarified at a later stage,” the statement said.

“At this point in time, it is the humanitarian duty of the Maltese authorities to allow these persons to disembark. Sending the ship back to Libya would be contrary to international law. The master of the ship has dispatched an urgent medical request as the injured woman needs immediate hospitalisation.”