Migrants rescued by Banksy ship brought to Italy

An Italian coastguard patrol ship arrived at port of Lampedusa late on Saturday carrying 49 migrants and a deceased person.

Among arrivals were 32 women, 13 children and four men, most vulnerable of survivors who h been rescued last week from Mediterranean Sea by MV Louise Michel, a rescue boat painted and funded by rewned street artist, Banksy.

Louise Michel has picked up several groups of migrants in recent days in central Mediterranean in what appeared to be its maiden rescue voy.

In a series of tweets over past few days, boat's crew has strongly criticized European Union over its migration policy, saying y contacted both Italian and Maltese coastguards seeking a port, but received response.

tone of tweets has grown more alarmist in past 48 hours after crew reported that boat was becoming dangerously overcrowded, was essentially stranded and that y were urgently seeking a port to disembark passengers to avoid furr loss of life.

European nations were urged also by UN refugee ncy on Saturday to let in hundreds of migrants rescued from Mediterranean Sea by humanitarian boats - including one sponsored by Banksy.

UNHCR and International Organization of Migration said more than 200 rescued refugees and migrants needed to immediately get off nprofit search-and-rescue ship MV Louise Michel, which y said was “currently far beyond its safe carrying capacity.”