400 migrants held on tourist boats allowed to land in Malta

More than 400 migrants disembarked in Malta overnight Saturday from four tourist boats in an about-face by the government that allowed them to land after nearly 40 days onboard.

The 425 migrants, who had been picked up in the Mediterranean during various rescue operations, had been in limbo since April on the chartered boats held outside Maltese waters.

Malta had refused them entry, pointing to the closure of its ports due to the coronavirus emergency and also to its full detention centres.