Official statements from the European Union

Matteo Salvini Acquitted; Court Finds No Crime in Blocking Migrant Ship with 147 Migrants

Dec 20, 2024, 05:44 PM

Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini has been acquitted by the court in Palermo in the case regarding his 2019 decision to block the migrant rescue ship Open Arms from docking in Italy. Salvini was accused of kidnapping and dereliction of duty for refusing to allow the disembarkation of 147 migrants rescued by the Spanish NGO's vessel in August 2019, leaving them stranded at sea for 20 days when he was serving as Interior Minister. Prosecutors had requested a six-year prison sentence and a one million euro fine. Before the verdict, Salvini stated, "I am proud to have defended my country; I would do what I did again." The court ruled that the accusations were unfounded, and Salvini was found not guilty because "the fact does not exist" ("il fatto non sussiste"). Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed "great satisfaction" with the acquittal, saying the judgment showed how "unfounded and surreal" the accusations against him were. The verdict has been met with satisfaction from Salvini's political allies and tested the limits of government authority in stemming migration.