{{italic title}} [[File:4 grodotzki seawatch3 20181219 3388.jpg|thumb|Sea-Watch 3]] '''''Sea-Watch 3''''' is a ship of the [[Sea-Watch]] organization based in [[Berlin]].<ref name="Buhtz">{{cite web |last1=Buhtz |first1=Andrea |title=Seenotrettung: "Sea Watch 3" jetzt unter deutscher Flagge registriert |trans-title=Sea rescue: "Sea Watch 3" now registered under German flag |url=https://www.zeit.de/gesellschaft/zeitgeschehen/2019-12/seenotrettung-sea-watch-3-deutsche-flagge |website=Die Zeit |access-date=7 July 2024 |language=de-DE |date=5 December 2019}}</ref> The ship is around 50 m long, and is registered as a Cargo Ship in Germany.<ref name="Buhtz"/> ''Sea-Watch 3'' is used for sea rescue in the Mediterranean.
==Description==
The ship is powered by two [[Caterpillar Inc.|Caterpillar]] (type: D399TA) [[Four-stroke engine|four-stroke]] sixteen-cylinder diesel engines with a total output of 1630 kW, which act on two fixed propellers via reduction gears.<ref name="ZH">{{cite web |title=Furore G |url=http://www.zeeschepenophetharingvliet.nl/index.php?id=478 |work=Zeeschepen of het Haringvliet |access-date=5 July 2018 |date= |archive-date=24 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190624114946/http://www.zeeschepenophetharingvliet.nl/index.php%3Fid%3D478 |url-status=dead }}</ref> This gives a speed of around 10 kn.<ref name="RG">{{cite web |title=Specifications |url=https://www.rederijgroen.nl/userfiles/file/Vessel%20Specs%20Furore-G.pdf |website=www.rederijgroen.nl |access-date=2021-06-15 |archive-date=2015-05-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150505113835/https://www.rederijgroen.nl/userfiles/file/Vessel%20Specs%20Furore-G.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> The ship is equipped with a [[bow thruster]].
Two generator sets with 156 and 184 kVA apparent power are available for power generation, which are driven by a [[Detroit diesel]] and a Caterpillar diesel engine.<ref name="ZH" /><ref name="RG" />
During service as ''Furore G'', the ship was operated by eight crew members who were accommodated in individual cabins. There was also space for seven other people in three double and one single cabin.<ref name="RG" />
''Sea-Watch 3'' is the successor to ''[[Sea-Watch 2]]'' (2016-2017) and the original vessel named ''[[Sea-Watch]]'' (2015).
==History==
The ship was built under construction number 211 by Shimoda Dockyard in Japan as an offshore supply vessel. The keel was laid in 1972. The ship was sold to Petroleiro Brasileiro S.A. in early July 1973. Petrobras Frota Nacional de Petroleiros in Rio de Janeiro put the vessel into service as ''Alegrete''. In 1982 it was sold to Companhia Brasileiro de Offshore in Salvador.<ref name="KB">{{cite web |author=Jack Bouman |url=https://koopvaardij.blogspot.com/2015/09/na-verkoop-herdoopt_17.html |trans-title=Renamed after sale |title=Na verkoop herdoopt |work=Koopvaardij |access-date=5 July 2018}}</ref>
In 1990 the ship was sold to Sunset Shipping in Douglas on the [[Isle of Man]] and converted into an offshore safety ship. The ship's new name was ''Seaboard Swift''.<ref name="KB" />
In the second half of the 1990s it was sold and renamed several times: in 1995 it came to Hornbeck Shipping in Douglas and was renamed ''Hornbeck Swift'', in 1997 as ''Swift'' to Tidewater Marine (Northsea) in Den Helder and in 1999 to Rederij West Friesland in Den Heroes who renamed it ''Swift 1''. The Rederij West Friesland had it converted into a support ship for seismic research at the Frisian Shipyard in Harlingen.<ref name="KB" />
In 2004 the ship came to Telco Marine in Den Helder, but a few months later it came to Vroon Offshore Service. The ship's new name was ''VOS Southwind''. In 2010 the ship was sold to Rederij Groen and renamed ''Furore G'' at the end of the year. The Rederij Groen used the ship as an offshore support ship.<ref name="KB" />
==Use as a rescue ship==
===''Dignity I''=== In 2015 the ship was sold to [[Doctors Without Borders]] Spain ({{Lang|es|Médicos Sin Fronteras España}}) in [[Barcelona]].<ref name="KB" /> The [[non-governmental organization]] used it as ''Dignity I'' for the rescue of refugees in the Mediterranean.
===Initial operations as ''Sea-Watch 3''=== In 2017, the Sea-Watch Association took over the ship, replacing the smaller ''Sea-Watch 2''. [[Pia Klemp]] was a short-term member of the crew.<ref name="la-notiz-190111">{{cite web |url=https://www.la-notizia.net/2019/01/11/pia-klemp-ong-migranti/ |title=Tempi duri per le navi delle ONG: il capitano Pia Klemp nel mirino della giustizia italiana |trans-title=Tough times for NGO ships: Captain Pia Klemp in the crosshairs of Italian justice |work=la-notizia.net |date=2019-01-11 |access-date=2019-07-02 |archive-date=2021-11-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211127181154/https://www.la-notizia.net/2019/01/11/pia-klemp-ong-migranti/ |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="dw-112348">{{cite web |url=https://www.dw.com/en/german-boat-captain-pia-klemp-faces-prison-in-italy-for-migrant-rescues/a-49112348 |title=German boat captain Pia Klemp faces prison in Italy for migrant rescues] |work=dw.com |date=2019-06-08 |access-date=2019-07-02}}</ref>
On 6 November 2017, several people died in an incident at sea. They fell or jumped into the water when the ''Sea Watch 3'' and a Libyan boat got in each other's way while rescuing castaways.
In June 2018, the ship was arrested by the Maltese authorities in the port of [[Valletta]] because it was allegedly not properly registered under the Dutch flag. Although the proper Dutch registration had already been clarified in July, the ''Sea-Watch 3'' was refused permission to leave Valletta until October for political reasons.<ref>{{cite web |author=Matthew Vella |url=https://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/national/89398/malta_still_preventing_seawatch_vessel_from_departing_despite_positive_inspection#.W_hAUjGNyFI |title=Malta still preventing Sea-Watch vessel from departing, despite positive inspection |work=Maltatoday |date=11 September 2018 |access-date=23 November 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=Christian Jakob |url=https://taz.de/Rettung-von-Gefluechteten-im-Mittelmeer/!5545200/ |title=Rückkehr der Seenotretter |trans-title=Return of the sea rescuers |work=TAZ |date=6 November 2018 |access-date=23 November 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author1=Raphael Thelen |author2= Andreas Evelt |url=https://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/malta-sea-watch-3-hat-alle-zulassungen-darf-aber-nicht-auslaufen-a-1221076.html |title=''Sea-Watch 3'' hat alle Zulassungen – darf aber nicht auslaufen. |trans-title=''Sea-Watch 3'' has all approvals – but is not allowed to leave the port |work=Spiegel |date=1 August 2018 |access-date=23 November 2018}}</ref> In December 2018, Sea-Watch filed a lawsuit against the Maltese Ministry of Transport for arbitrarily preventing the ''Sea-Watch 3'' from being freely available.<ref>{{cite web |author=Denise Grech |url=https://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20181211/local/transport-ministry-taken-to-court-over-abuse-of-power.696468 |title=Transport Ministry taken to court over 'abuse of power' |work=Malta Times |date=11 December 2018 |access-date=11 December 2018}}</ref>
==Legal dispute over port access in Italy== ===January 2019===
In January 2019, Italy refused to allow the ''Sea-Watch 3'' to enter one of its ports with several rescued people on board, as the nearest safe port to the rescue location was in [[Tunisia]]. Ten days after the rescue of the 47 people, in response to a lawsuit by the captain of ''Sea Watch 3'' and several rescued people on board, the [[European Court of Human Rights]] decided that Italy had to provide the people on board with food and medical care. The minors on board must also be provided with legal assistance. The applicants had actually requested that the migrants be allowed to leave the boat. The court did not comply.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.welt.de/politik/ausland/article187932386/Gerichtsentscheid-Italien-muss-Migranten-auf-Sea-Watch-3-helfen.html |title=Italien muss Migranten auf "Sea-Watch 3" helfen |trans-title=Italy must help migrants on "Sea-Watch 3" |language=de |website=welt.de |date=2019-01-30 |access-date=2019-01-30}}</ref> A little later it became known from those around the Italian government that representatives of Germany, France, Portugal, Romania and Malta had agreed to accept the people.<ref>{{cite web |author1=Colleen Barry |author2=Menelaos Hadjicostis |agency=AP |url=https://www.yahoo.com/news/italys-salvini-defends-himself-possible-charges-114446613.html |title=Italy: 5 EU nations will take in migrants stranded at sea. |date=29 January 2019 |via=yahoo.com |access-date=29 January 2019}}</ref>
===May 2019===
In mid-May 2019, the crew of the ''Sea-Watch 3'' rescued 65 people, 60 kilometers off the Libyan coast. The Italian Minister of the Interior, [[Matteo Salvini]], issued a ban on sailing into Italian territorial waters.<ref>{{cite web |author=Angelo Scarano |url=http://www.ilgiornale.it/news/cronache/sea-watch-65-migranti-bordo-salvini-non-avvicinatevi-1695205.html |title=La Sea Watch con 65 migranti a bordo. Salvini: "Non avvicinatevi all'Italia". |trans-title=The Sea Watch with 65 migrants on board. Salvini: "Don't come near Italy." |website=ilgiornale.it |date=15 May 2019}}</ref> A little later, the injured and their families were taken in, 18 people went ashore in a coast guard boat. The ship itself remained outside Italian waters, 15 nautical miles from Lampedusa. According to the activists, some of the remaining 47 people then considered suicide if they were not brought ashore as well.<ref>{{cite web |author=Alessandra Ziniti |url=https://www.repubblica.it/cronaca/2019/05/18/news/la_sea_watch_pronta_a_infrangere_il_divieto_di_salvini_entrando_in_acque_italiane-226578085/?ref=RHPPLF-BL-I0-C8-P1-S1.8-T1 |title=La Sea Watch pronta a infrangere il divieto di Salvini entrando in acque italiane. |trans-title=Sea Watch ready to defy Salvini's ban by entering Italian waters. |website=repubblica.it |date=18 May 2019}}</ref> Finally, on 18 May, despite the ban, the crew headed for Italian territorial waters.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.dw.com/en/unhcr-urges-eu-to-stop-sending-migrants-to-libya/a-48792348 |title=UNHCR urges EU to stop sending migrants to Libya. |website=DW.com |date=19 May 2019}}</ref> Humanitarian reasons as well as the psychological condition of the "guests" compelled this and the boat claimed the right to call at the next safe haven.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.derstandard.de/story/2000103423900/sea-watch-3-mit-dutzenden-migranten-vor-lampedusa |title=Sea-Watch 3 mit dutzenden Migranten vor Lampedusa |trans-title=Sea-Watch 3 with dozens of migrants off Lampedusa |website=Standard.at |date=19 May 2019}}</ref> The people were brought ashore off Lampedusa by the Italian coast guard and the [[Guardia di Finanza]]. The ship was confiscated as a precaution. Salvini demanded the ship's decommissioning and sinking.<ref>{{cite news |author=Colleen Berry |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/italys-salvini-angered-as-47-migrants-land-despite-his-ban/2019/05/20/3f103bc4-7ad2-11e9-b1f3-b233fe5811ef_story.html?noredirect=on |title=Italy's Salvini furious as 47 migrants land despite his ban. |newspaper=Washington Post |date=20 May 2019 |access-date=21 May 2019}}</ref> He accused the public prosecutor who ordered the landing of "aiding and abetting illegal immigration to Italy". The interior minister threatened to take action against anyone who did such a thing.<ref>{{cite web |author=Jörg Seisselberg |url=https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/salvini-seawatch-justiz-101.html |title=Salvini auf Crashkurs mit der Justiz. |trans-title=Salvini on a crash course with the judiciary. |website=tagesschau.de |date=21 May 2019 |access-date=21 May 2019}}</ref> On 1 June 2019, the ship was released again by the authorities.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/sea-watch-143.html |title=''Sea-Watch 3'' in Italien wieder frei. |trans-title=''Sea-Watch 3'' released again in Italy |website=tagesschau.de |access-date=1 June 2019}}</ref> Subsequently, the chairman of the council of the [[Evangelical Church in Germany]], [[Heinrich Bedford-Strohm]], visited the ship, which was not yet docked, to express his support for the crew.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/bedford-strohm-sea-watch-101.html |title=EKD-Ratschef unterstützt Seenotretter |trans-title=EKD Council President supports sea rescuers |work=[[tagesschau.de]] |date=3 June 2019 |access-date=17 June 2019}}</ref>
===Confiscation, summer 2019===
The ''Sea Watch 3'' with twenty-two crew members<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/wer-ist-carola-rackete-das-erzaehlen-weggefaehrten-ueber-die-sea-watch-kapitaenin/24517714.html |title=Das erzählen Weggefährten über die "Sea-Watch"-Kapitänin |trans-title=This is what companions say about the "Sea-Watch" captain |website=tagesspiegel.de |date=3 July 2019}}</ref> and two employees of the [[Norddeutscher Rundfunk|NDR]], including Nadia Kailouli, on board, saved 53 people from Libya.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ndr.de/kultur/Nadia-Kailouli-mit-Hintergruenden-zur-Sea-Watch-3,seawatchdrei100.html |title=Nadia Kailouli mit Hintergründen zur "Sea-Watch 3" |trans-title=Nadia Kailouli with background information on the “Sea-Watch 3” |website=ndr.de |date=1 July 2019}}</ref> According to the crew's guest coordinator, there were thirty-eight men, nine women, three unaccompanied minors and three children, most of them from Ivory Coast or Ghana, some from Mali, Guinea, Egypt and Libya.<ref name="38933-" /> First ten,<ref name="24 Stunden" /> and later another three people were brought ashore to Italy, mostly for medical reasons, while forty (thirty-two men, six women and two unaccompanied adolescents) remained on board<ref name="38933-">{{cite web |url=https://www.nordbayern.de/politik/sea-watch-forchheimer-crewmitglied-verteidigt-kapitanin-1.9056486 |title=Nürnberger Nachrichten 1 July 2019, P. 3 fehlen Kapitel (darunter das betreffende der Print-Ausgabe) sea-watch forchheimer crewmitglied verteidigt kapitanin |trans-title=Sea-Watch Forchheim crew member defends captain |website=www.nordbayern.de |date=1 July 2019 |page=3}}</ref> while the ship entered Lampedusa without a permit. Interior Minister Matteo Salvini described the ship as a pirate ship.<ref name="24 Stunden">{{cite web |url=https://www.welt.de/politik/ausland/article195395449/Sea-Watch-3-Rettungsschiff-darf-erneut-nicht-in-Italien-anlegen.html |title="24 Stunden am Tag nur Wasser, und es bewegt sich nichts" |trans-title="Just water 24 hours a day, and nothing moves" |website=welt.de |date=17 June 2019}}</ref><ref name="Verbot">{{cite web |author=Jörg Seisselberg |url=https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/sea-watch-149.html |title=''Sea-Watch 3'' ignoriert Verbot |trans-title=''Sea-Watch 3'' ignores ban. |website=tagesschau.de |date=26 June 2019 |access-date=26 June 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.repubblica.it/cronaca/2019/06/15/news/migranti_sea_watch_noi_non_riporteremo_nessuno_in_libia_-228815750/ |title=Migranti, Salvini: "Firmato divieto di ingresso per la Sea Watch". Ong: "Non riporteremo nessuno in Libia" |trans-title=Migrants, Salvini: "Entry ban signed for the Sea Watch." NGO: "We will not return anyone to Libya." |website=repubblica.it |date=15 June 2019}}</ref> The [[United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees]] and the [[International Organization for Migration]] appealed to European states to take in the rescued.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.zdf.de/nachrichten/heute/un-appellieren-erneut-an-europa--sea-watch-3--migranten-retten-100.html |title=UN fordern Aufnahme von "Sea Watch"-Migranten |trans-title=UN calls for acceptance of "Sea Watch" migrants |website=zdf.de |date=21 June 2019 |access-date=4 July 2019}}</ref> On June 21, Captain Rackete and several nationals from various African countries applied to the [[European Court of Human Rights]] for an interim order to force Italy to allow the ship to enter.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ansa.it/english/news/general_news/2019/06/24/sea-watch-appeals-to-human-rights-court_09fa61a1-6e59-4ce6-99dd-9cba1c95a63f.html |title=Sea Watch appeals to Human Rights court. |website=ansa.it |date=24 June 2019}}</ref> However, the court rejected the urgent application on 25 June 2019, as provisional measures are only provided if there is an "immediate risk of irreparable damage". The situation on board the ship currently did not justify any coercion against Italy. Italy was informed that the court was relying on the necessary help from the authorities in relation to "those in the situation of vulnerability".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/sea-watch-3-fluechtlinge-scheitern-vor-europaeischem-gerichtshof-fuer-menschenrechte-a-1274294.html |title=Flüchtlinge scheitern vor Gericht und müssen auf See bleiben |trans-title=Refugees fail in court and have to remain at sea |work=Spiegel Online |date=25 June 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/eng-press?i=003-6443348-8477489 |title=Rackete et autres c. Italie – mesure provisoire refusée pour le Sea Watch 3. |work=[[Human Rights Documentation]] |date=25 June 2019 |access-date=25 June 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.welt.de/politik/ausland/article195971559/Italien-Salvini-wuetet-gegen-reiche-weisse-Sea-Watch-Kapitaenin.html |title=Salvini wütet gegen deutsche Sea-Watch-Kapitänin |trans-title=Salvini rages against German Sea-Watch captain |work=Die Welt |date=27 June 2019}} {{cite web |url=https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/app/conversion/pdf?library=ECHR&id=003-6443348-8477489&filename=Rackete%20et%20autres%20c.%20Italie%20-%20mesure%20provisoire%20refus%E9e%20pour%20le%20Sea%20Watch%203.pdf |trans-title=Rackete and others v. Italy: interim measure refused for the Sea Watch 3 |title=Rackete et autres c. Italie mesure provisoire refuse pour le Sea Watch 3 |website=hudoc.echr.coe.int}}</ref>
On 26 June 2019, the ship entered Italian territorial waters despite the threat of high fines, because after two weeks on the ship the migrants “couldn't take it anymore” and “some threatened to jump overboard”.<ref name="Verbot" /> Salvini called on the judiciary to act quickly <ref name="wütet">{{cite web |author=Jörg Seisselberg |url=https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/sea-watch-153.html |title=Salvini wütet gegen "Sea-Watch" |website=tagesschau.de |date=26 June 2019 |access-date=27 June 2019}}</ref><ref>{{ill|Michael Braun (journalist)|lt=Michael Braun|de}}{{cite web |last1=Braun |first1=Michael |url=https://taz.de/Sea-Watch-3-vor-Lampedusa/!5607383/ |trans-title=Approached, but not in port |title=Angesteuert, aber nicht im Hafen |website=taz.de |date=27 June 2019 |access-date=27 June 2019}}</ref> and said that Italy was not a "landing stage for illegals".<ref name="anlegen">{{cite web |url=https://www.zeit.de/gesellschaft/zeitgeschehen/2019-06/rettungsschiff-sea-watch-italien-verbot-strafe-risiko |title=Kapitänin der "Sea-Watch 3" will trotz Verbots in Italien anlegen |trans-title=Captain of the “Sea-Watch 3” wants to dock in Italy despite ban |website=zeit.de |date=26 June 2019 |access-date=26 June 2019}}</ref> "It is a Dutch ship from a German non-governmental organization that has taken in migrants off Libya." According to Salvini, nobody understood why Italy and its citizens should be responsible for it and should pay for it.<ref name="wütet" /> The ship was stopped by the coast guard.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/sea-watch-159.html |title=''Sea-Watch 3'' vor Lampedusa gestoppt |trans-title=Sea-Watch 3 stopped off Lampedusa |website=tagesschau.de |date=27 June 2019 |access-date=27 June 2019}}</ref> Several Italian MPs then stayed overnight on the ship out of solidarity.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.zdf.de/nachrichten/heute/patt-um--sea-watch--dauert-an-zwei-migranten-duerfen-an-land-100.html |title=Zwei Migranten dürfen an Land |trans-title=Two migrants are allowed to disembark |website=zdf.de |date=28 June 2019 |access-date=4 July 2019}}</ref>
The Archbishop of Turin, [[Cesare Nosiglia]], meanwhile offered that his church could look after the people without burdening the state.<ref>{{cite web |title=Erzbischof von Turin will Migranten von Sea-Watch 3 aufnehmen |trans-title=Archbishop of Turin wants to accept migrants from Sea-Watch 3 |url=https://www.deutschlandfunk.de/italien-erzbischof-von-turin-will-migranten-von-sea-watch-3.1939.de.html?drn:news_id=1020677 |website=deutschlandfunk.de |access-date=27 June 2019 |date=24 June 2019 |archive-date=27 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190627020151/https://www.deutschlandfunk.de/italien-erzbischof-von-turin-will-migranten-von-sea-watch-3.1939.de.html?drn:news_id=1020677 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In addition, several German cities had also agreed to accept them. For this, however, the approval of the federal government would be necessary,<ref name="anlegen" /> because the federal government assumes around 90% of the costs for accommodation and living costs of the admitted refugees. The mayor of the Sicilian capital Palermo, [[Leoluca Orlando]], made the ship's crew honorary citizens.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.kn-online.de/Nachrichten/Politik/Diese-Promis-setzen-sich-fuer-die-Sea-Watch-Kapitaenin-ein |title=Ermittlungen gegen Sea-Watch-Kapitänin: Jetzt kündigen Böhmermann und Klaas Hilfe an |trans-title=Investigations against Sea-Watch captain: Now Böhmermann and Klaas announce help |work=[[kn-online.de]] |date=28 June 2019 |access-date=28 June 2019 |archive-date=28 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190628172129/https://www.kn-online.de/Nachrichten/Politik/Diese-Promis-setzen-sich-fuer-die-Sea-Watch-Kapitaenin-ein |url-status=dead }}</ref>
On the night of 29 June the captain surprised the security forces with a mooring manoeuvre in the port of Lampedusa. A state patrol boat tried to prevent this and was pushed against the pier. A Sea-Watch spokesman justified the action with: “It was the last desperate attempt to ensure the safety of the people.” However, a political solution for the migrants had already been agreed at that time: Several EU states, including Germany, had offered to take in those seeking protection. Italy's Interior Minister Salvini, however, demanded appropriate guarantees, without which the ship would not have been allowed to land. A few hours after the mooring manoeuvre, the rescued migrants were allowed to go ashore.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/sea-watch-173.html |title=Flüchtlinge verlassen "Sea-Watch |trans-title=Refugees leave "Sea-Watch |author=Tassilo Forchheimer |work=tagesschau.de |date=29 June 2019 |access-date=29 June 2019}}</ref><ref name="è stata arrestata">{{cite web |url=https://www.rainews.it/dl/rainews/articoli/migranti-sea-watch-lampedusa-Carola-Rackete-784c5943-5d5b-4720-bb9f-122a6a895694.html |title=Sea Watch 3 entra a Lampedusa. Sbarcati i migranti, la comandante è stata arrestata |trans-title=Sea Watch 3 enters Lampedusa. After the migrants disembark, the captain has been arrested. |work=Rai News 24/rainews.it |date=29 June 2019 |access-date=29 June 2019}}</ref><ref name="zdf 2906">{{cite web |url=https://www.zdf.de/nachrichten/heute/kapitaeninen-der-sea-watch-3-droht-festgenommen-deutsche-politiker-solidarisch-100.html |title="Der eigentliche Skandal ist das Ertrinken im Mittelmeer" |trans-title="The real scandal is drowning in the Mediterranean" |work=zdf.de |date=29 June 2019 |access-date=29 June 2019}}</ref> The arrested captain faced a fine of up to 50,000 euros for violating the port and water closures and between three and ten years in prison for resisting and using violence against a warship. The Interior Minister announced that if she was not convicted, she would be deported for endangering national security.<ref name="zdf 2906" />
The house arrest was lifted on July 2 by an investigating judge in [[Agrigento]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/rackete-sea-watch-freilassung-101.html |title=Rackete kommt wieder frei |work=tagesschau.de |date=2 July 2019 |access-date=2 July 2019}}</ref> According to the MDR court ruling of the regional court, the judge ruled that the obligation to rescue at sea according to international maritime law should be assessed more strongly than the legal regulations in Italy that were changed by Interior Minister Salvini. The captain acted “in the fulfillment of a duty”. The extent of the collision with a boat of the Guardia di Finanza moored on the quay wall was exaggerated. Rackete was relieved.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.mdr.de/nachrichten/politik/ausland/italien-gericht-entlastet-sea-watch-kapitaenin-rackete-seenotrettung-100.html |title=Richterin sieht Sea-Watch-Kapitänin im Recht |trans-title=Judge finds Sea-Watch captain in the right |work=www.mdr.de |date=5 July 2019 |access-date=2 September 2019}}</ref> After the judge was verbally attacked by the media and Salvini, the Italian judges' association ANM accused Salvini of nurturing a climate of hatred and aversion.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.diepresse.com/5654466/sea-watch-schutz-fur-richterin-nach-freilassung-racketes-gefordert |title=Sea-Watch: Schutz für Richterin nach Freilassung Racketes gefordert |trans-title=Sea-Watch: Protection for judge demanded after Rackete's release |work=Die Presse |date=4 July 2019 |access-date=30 October 2019}}</ref> The UN human rights experts of the UN Human Rights Council condemned the criminalization of sea rescue and the intimidation of the independent Italian judiciary by the media and Salvini on July 18. The judicial decision aligned with the established international legal norms on sea rescue.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=24833&LangID=E |title=Italy: UN experts condemn criminalisation of migrant rescues and threats to the independence of judiciary' |work=OHCHR |date=18 July 2019 |access-date=30 October 2019}}</ref> On 25 September 2019, the Agrigento public prosecutor's office reimposed the seizure of the ship in order to preserve evidence. The ship was not allowed to sail because it would have violated the security decrees issued by Salvini. In mid-December, a court in [[Palermo]] released the ''Sea Watch 3'' so that it could leave the port of [[Licata]] at the end of 2019 and resume sea rescue operations.<ref>{{cite web |title=Sea-Watch rescue boat to resume migrant missions – DW – 12/19/2019 |url=https://www.dw.com/en/germanys-sea-watch-rescue-boat-to-resume-migrant-missions/a-51742837 |website=dw.com |access-date=12 January 2020 |language=en |date=30 December 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Vu |first1=Vanessa |last2=KNA |first2=KNA Katholische Nachrichten-Agentur |title=Seenotrettung: "Sea-Watch 3" startet nächste Rettungsmission |trans-title=Sea rescue: "Sea-Watch 3" starts next rescue mission |url=https://www.zeit.de/gesellschaft/2019-12/seenotrettung-sea-watch-3-rettungsschiff-mittelmeer-fluechtlinge |website=Die Zeit |access-date=12 January 2020 |language=de-DE |date=30 December 2019}}</ref>
In February 2026 a court in [[Palermo]] sentenced the state of Italy to reimburse all costs incurred by the NGO in connection with the seizure of ''Sea Watch 3''. According to the verdict, port fees, fuel cost and legal fees amount to some 76,000 Euro.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://palermo.repubblica.it/cronaca/2026/02/18/news/il_tribunale_di_palermo_fermo_illegittimo_italia_risarcisca_76mila_euro_a_sea_watch-425167219/ |title=Il Tribunale di Palermo: “Fermo illegittimo, Italia risarcisca 76mila euro a Sea Watch” |trans-title=The Palermo Court: "Unlawful arrest, Italy must pay €76,000 in compensation to Sea Watch." |work=repubblica.it |date=18 February 2026 |access-date=18 February 2026 }}</ref>
==2020==
On 9 January 2020, the activists took in two groups of 59 and 17 migrants, and on 10 January another 42 people who had previously requested rescue via the [[Alarm-Phone-Initiative]] were added.<ref>{{cite web |title="Sea Watch 3" rettet 59 Flüchtlinge im Mittelmeer |url=https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/sea-watch-fluechtlinge-103.html |website=tagesschau.de |access-date=24 July 2024 |language=de |date=10 January 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Sea-Watch rescues around 120 migrants in central Mediterranean |url=https://www.infomigrants.net/en/post/22001/sea-watch-rescues-around-120-migrants-in-central-mediterranean |website=InfoMigrants |access-date=24 July 2024 |language=en |date=10 January 2020}}</ref> According to the Maltese military, the people taken on board from ''Sea Watch 3'' and 118 people from the ''Open Arms'' were to be taken over by Maltese ships on 11 January and transported ashore.<ref>{{cite web |title=Asylum seekers being brought to Malta - AFM |url=https://timesofmalta.com/articles/view/asylum-seekers-being-brought-to-malta-afm.762585 |website=Times of Malta |access-date=24 July 2024 |language=en-gb |date=11 January 2020}}</ref> On 14 January, Italy assigned [[Taranto]] as a safe port of disembarkation for ''Sea-Watch 3''. The berthing in Taranto took place on 16 January and all the 119 rescued people went ashore.<ref>{{cite web |author1=@seawatchcrew |title=Sea-Watch (@seawatchcrew) |url=https://twitter.com/seawatchcrew?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed&ref_url=https://www.welt.de/politik/ausland/article204904850/Sea-Watch-3-rettet-120-Migranten-im-Mittelmeer.html |website=Twitter |date=2020-01-16}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Italien weist 2 Schiffen mit Migranten Häfen zu |url=https://www.stol.it/artikel/chronik/italien-weist-2-schiffen-mit-migranten-haefen-zu |website=Südtirol' |access-date=17 January 2020 |date=14 January 2020}}</ref>
On 25 February, the activists picked up 194 migrants from three boats off the Libyan coast and then motored towards Italy. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the President of the [[Sicily]] Region, Sebastiano Musumeci, called for the migrants on board to be quarantined.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://palermo.repubblica.it/cronaca/2020/02/26/news/verso_messina_la_sea_watch_3_con_a_bordo_194_migranti-249606071/ |title=Verso Messina la Sea Watch 3 con a bordo 194 migranti. Musumeci in allarme per il coronavirus: "Vada altrove" |trans-title=The Sea Watch 3 with 194 migrants aboard is headed for Messina. Musumeci is alarmed by the coronavirus: "Go elsewhere." |website=palermo.repubblica.it |date=26 February 2020 |access-date= }}</ref> The measure was ordered the following day, as on the ''[[Ocean Viking]]'', and both the crew and the migrants remain quarantined on land for two weeks.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.repubblica.it/cronaca/2020/02/27/news/coronavirus_migranti_negativi_equipaggi_fermi_in_quarantena-249687178/?refresh_ce |title=Coronavirus, migranti negativi, equipaggi fermi in quarantena. E a Messina è arrivata la Sea Watch |trans-title=Coronavirus, migrants test negative, crews stuck in quarantine. And the Sea Watch has arrived in Messina. |website=repubblica.it |date=27 February 2020 |access-date= }}</ref>
In mid-March 2020, the ship could not leave the shipyard in [[Messina]] because spare parts were missing and further, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, a crew could not be put together due to travel restrictions.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.evangelisch.de/inhalte/167449/19-03-2020/keine-seenotrettung-wegen-corona-pandemie |title=Keine Seenotrettung wegen Corona-Pandemie |trans-title=No sea rescue due to corona pandemic |website=evangelisch.de |date=19 March 2020 |access-date= }}</ref>
The ship left again on 7 June 2020, and on 17 June the activists reportedly recovered 100 migrants 29 nautical miles from [[Az-Zawiya]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.stol.it/artikel/politik/sea-watch-3-rettet-etwa-100-migranten-vor-libyen |title=Sea Watch-3 rettet etwa 100 Migranten vor Libyen |trans-title=Sea Watch-3 rescues about 100 migrants off Libya |website=stol.it |date=17 June 2020 |access-date= |archive-date=26 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210926001741/https://www.stol.it/artikel/politik/sea-watch-3-rettet-etwa-100-migranten-vor-libyen |url-status=dead }}</ref> Later that day, 65 more were added,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.infomigrants.net/en/post/25452/sea-watch-rescues-165-migrants-from-central-mediterranean |title=Sea-Watch rescues 165 migrants from central Mediterranean |website=infomigrants.net |date=18 June 2020 |access-date= }}</ref> followed by 46 the next day.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.derstandard.at/story/2000118185787/211-gefluechtete-an-bord-von-rettungsschiff-sea-watch-3 |title=211 Geflüchtete an Bord von Rettungsschiff "Sea-Watch 3" |trans-title=211 refugees on board rescue ship "Sea-Watch 3" |website=Standard.at |date=19 June 2020 |access-date= }}</ref> They were apparently part of a larger operation in which [[Libya]]n and [[Tunisia]]n people smugglers sent around 600 people in various boats towards Italy within a few hours. The majority are said to have been intercepted by the [[Libyan Coast Guard|Libyan coast guard]].<ref>{{cite web |author=Alessandra Ziniti |url=https://www.repubblica.it/cronaca/2020/06/17/news/migranti_sea_watch_soccorse_100_persone_al_largo_della_libia-259456687/ |title=Migranti: 600 persone messe in mare dai trafficanti. Sea Watch ne soccorre 100 |trans-title=Migrants: 600 people sent to sea by traffickers. Sea Watch rescues 100. |website=repubblica.it |date=17 June 2020 |access-date= }}</ref> The 211 migrants were quarantined on a ferry in [[Porto Empedocle]] on 21 June. A migrant who had already shown symptoms when landing tested positive for the coronavirus by the Italian authorities, who then ordered the activists to be quarantined.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.agrigentonotizie.it/cronaca/ricoverato-malattie-infettive-caltanissetta-migrante-sbarcato-sea-watch-porto-empedocle.html |title=Migrante sbarcato dalla Sea Watch risulta positivo al Covid-19: ricoverato a Malattie infettive |trans-title=Migrant disembarked from the Sea Watch tests positive for Covid-19 and is admitted to the Infectious Diseases ward. |website=agrigentonotizie.it |date=23 June 2020 |access-date= }}</ref>
===Opinions from experts on the law of the sea===
Nele Matz-Lück, professor of public law with a focus on the law of the sea at the [[University of Kiel]], sees a legal gap in the conventions on the law of the sea. The coastal states are not automatically obliged by their sovereignty to let rescued persons ashore, but could instead provide them with medical care on board, for example.
Valentin Schatz, Chair of International Maritime Law at the [[University of Hamburg]] says that Italy should have assigned a port. A return of refugees to Libya would be illegal, so it is understandable to head for the nearest port of [[Lampedusa]]. The ship is not designed for a further non-stop voyage to its [[flag state]] of the Netherlands. "The law is somewhat more on the part of the NGO, but ultimately the international law of the sea does not regulate how this situation is to be resolved".<ref>{{cite web |author=Konstantin Kumpfmüller |url=http://www.tagesschau.de/faktenfinder/faq-seerecht-101.html |title=Wer regelt, wie gerettet wird? |trans-title=Who decides how rescue takes place? |website=tagesschau.de |date=1 July 2019 |access-date=1 July 2019}}</ref>
===2021===
From 26 to 28 February 2021, after a seven-month break, the ''Sea-Watch 3'' rescued 317 people from drowning off the Libyan coast. A week earlier, the ship had left the port of the Spanish city of [[Burriana]] to patrol the Libyan coast.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/sea-watch-rettet-mehr-als-300-menschen-a-50e0a9fc-4474-4590-a8dc-a95660dce929 |title=Sea-Watch rettet mehr als 300 Menschen |trans-title=Sea-Watch rescues more than 300 people |website=DER SPIEGEL |date=2021-02-28 |access-date= }}</ref>
The Italian coast guard interned the ''Sea-Watch 3'' on 21 March in [[Augusta, Sicily|Augusta]]. The ship was heavily overloaded when 363 shipwrecked people were rescued on 3 March and had violated regulations when entering Augusta and the crew had contaminated port facilities with hydraulic oil from a crane. During the ship inspection, deficiencies in fire and environmental protection measures were found. A spokeswoman for SeaWatch stated that the allegations were already known from the last internment and were politically motivated.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rainews.it/dl/rainews/articoli/Migranti-fermo-amministrativo-per-Sea-watch-3-ad-Augusta-59d0d894-b777-44cc-aa0e-1621ceca18ad.html |title=Migranti, fermo amministrativo per "Sea Watch 3" ad Augusta |trans-title=Migrants: "Sea Watch 3" administratively detained in Augusta |website=rainews.it |date=22 March 2021 |access-date= }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/europa/sea-watch-211.html |title="Sea-Watch 3" in Italien festgesetzt. |trans-title="Sea-Watch 3" detained in Italy. |website=Tagesschau |date=22 March 2021 |access-date=30 March 2021}}</ref>
After some four months of maintenance and repairs, ''Sea-Watch 3'' was able to resume its deployment at the end of July 2021. At the end of December 2021, the ship with 440 migrants aboard was assigned the port of Pozzallo in southern Sicily. According to the crew, more than 200 children and teenagers were on the ship, of which 167 were without parents or other adult companions. They had tried to get to Italy from Libya by small boats across the Mediterranean. Permission to disembark was preceded by a waiting period of days. Health-weakened people had already been brought off board before entering the port.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Nguyen |first1=Chi |last2=KNA |first2=KNA Katholische Nachrichten-Agentur |title="Sea-Watch 3": Sizilien lässt Rettungsschiff mit 440 Migranten an Bord anlanden |url=https://www.zeit.de/gesellschaft/2021-12/sea-watch-3-seenotrettung-sizilien |website=Die Zeit |language=de-DE |date=31 December 2021 |access-date=18 October 2025 |trans-title="Sea-Watch 3": Sicily allows rescue ship with 440 migrants on board to land}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title="Sea-Watch 3" darf in Sizilien anlegen |url=https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/europa/seawatch-sizilien-101.html |website=tagesschau.de |access-date=18 October 2025 |language=de |trans-title="Sea-Watch 3" is allowed to dock in Sicily}}</ref>
===2022=== On 24 September 2022, the ship was detained in the Italian port of Reggio Calabria, having previously brought 427 migrants ashore. According to Sea Watch, the authorities’ accusation is that too many migrants and refugees would have been brought on board.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Deutschland |first1=RedaktionsNetzwerk |title=Sea-Watch 3: Deutsches Seenotrettungsschiff in Italien, Reggio Calabria, festgesetzt |url=https://www.rnd.de/politik/sea-watch-3-deutsches-seenotrettungsschiff-in-italien-reggio-calabria-festgesetzt-ZYUV6UENBINKNNSYSVQS4ZBRPA.html |website=www.rnd.de |access-date=18 October 2025 |language=de |date=24 September 2022 |trans-title=Sea-Watch 3: German sea rescue ship detained in Reggio Calabria, Italy}}</ref>
==Decommissioning== In May 2023, ''Sea-Watch 3'' was shut down, scrapped and recycled at the Galloo shipyard in Ghent, Belgium. She was the flagship of Sea-Watch and had sailed in the Mediterranean for six years in the service of sea rescue.<ref>{{cite web |title=Breaking Up – Migrant Rescue Ship SEA WATCH 3 – May 2023 - Malta Ship Photos & Action Photos |url=https://maltashipphotos.com/breaking-up-migrant-rescue-ship-sea-watch-3-may-2023/ |website=maltashipphotos.com |access-date=18 October 2025 |date=6 May 2023}}</ref> Sea-Watch have a new ship, ''[[Sea-Watch 5]]'', which has been rebuilt and expanded in Flensburg for rescue missions.
==Film== Sea Watch 3: NDR documentary by filmmakers Nadia Kailouli and Jonas Schreijäg. They accompanied the ''Sea Watch 3'' on the rescue voyage in June 2019 for 21 days until [[Carola Rackete]] was arrested.<ref>{{cite web |author=Rupert Sommer |url=https://www.weser-kurier.de/deutschland-welt/deutschland-welt-kultur_artikel,-21-tage-an-bord-der-seawatch-3-tvdoku-zeichnet-carola-racketes-irrfahrt-nach-_arid,1866094.html |title=21 Tage an Bord der "Sea-Watch 3": TV-Doku zeichnet Carola Racketes Irrfahrt nach |trans-title=21 days on board the “Sea-Watch 3”: TV documentary traces Carola Rackete’s odyssey |website=Weserkurier |date=8 October 2019 |access-date=22 October 2019 |archive-date=10 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191010142637/https://www.weser-kurier.de/deutschland-welt/deutschland-welt-kultur_artikel,-21-tage-an-bord-der-seawatch-3-tvdoku-zeichnet-carola-racketes-irrfahrt-nach-_arid,1866094.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> The film was awarded the [[Grimme-Preis|Grimme Prize]] 2020.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.3sat.de/film/dokumentarfilmzeit/seawatch-3-100.html |title=''Sea-Watch 3.'' |website=3-SAT |date=May 2020 |access-date=26 November 2020}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
[[Category:Sea rescue organizations]] [[Category:European migrant crisis]] [[Category:Immigrant rights activism]] [[Category:Humanitarian aid organizations in Europe]] [[Category:Refugee aid organizations in Europe]]