A cargo vessel with around 140 would-be illegal immigrants is on its way to Italy, ending four days of drama at sea, amid a diplomatic spat between Italy and Malta, according to dpa. The Italian government said Sunday it would allow the immigrants to land for humanitarian reasons and in view of Malta's continued insistence that it would not take them in. The conditions on board the Turkish vessel Pinar are said to be miserable, with rough seas making life uncomfortable for the 13 crew members and 140 immigrants, including two pregnant women. A dead pregnant woman is also on board. Pinar Erdogdu, the owner of the ship, told The Sunday Times of Malta that everyone on board was falling ill and the ship needed help "immediately." The group of African immigrants was rescued from two separate boats by the Turkish ship near Lampedusa on Thursday in an operation coordinated by the Armed Forces of Malta. The vessel was refused entry into Italian waters by the Italian authorities, who insisted that the migrants should be taken to Malta, which is responsible for the search and rescue region. Malta maintained, however, that in terms of international conventions, the immigrants had to be landed at the nearest safe port, in this case Lampedusa. The two countries have traded accusations of failure to live up to their international obligations. Italian Interior Minister Roberto Maroni said he would be presenting a dossier about the case to the European Commission this week. Malta has been insisting for years that it needs help with the number of illegal immigrants reaching its shores.
