Amid an ongoing standoff over the fate of 32 migrants stranded in the Mediterranean aboard a German charity rescue ship, far-right interior minister Matteo Salvini on Wednesday said it was a "sacred duty" to defend Italy's borders.
"Defending the homeland is a sacred duty. Ask our fathers, grandfathers and great grandfathers, who died to defend this country," Salvini said in a video posted to his Facebook page.
Malta said on Wednesday the Sea Watch could shelter in its waters after an outcry over the plight of the migrants - including three young children - who were rescued in international waters of Libya on 22 December.
No European country has so far offered to take in the migrants, despite an unprecedented a petition from 300 academics and an earlier plea from NGO to EU governments to assume shared responsibility for refugees and migrants.
Salvini on 23 December refused to allow the Seawatch to dock at a safe Italian port, repeating his call for an end to human trafficking.
"SeaWatch3, another boat belong into another NGO (flying a Dutch flag) that asks to disembark in Italy dozens of immigrants picked up off the Libyan coast," Savini tweeted.
"My reply is unchanging: Italian ports are closed, stop human trafficking," the tweet added.
