Update 8: Government requests ship master to return to rescue location

(Adds government's letter) The Government has sent a letter signed by the Attorney General to Trevor Sullivan, the local agent of the tanker waiting outside Maltese waters with 102 immigrants on board, holding the agents responsible for any damages Malta may suffer. The tanker picked up migrants near Libya, it was stopped from entering Maltese waters and is currently under army surveillance. This evening, the ship's company appealed to the Italian and Maltese authorities to "urgently provide clear instructions for disembarkation of the rescued people" four of whom were pregnant and required medical assistance. It said that those rescued, who claim to be from Ethiopia and Eritrea, included a baby and 20 women, one of them injured. In its letter, the Government called on the ship's master to proceed to that location which represented the nearest place of safety at the time of rescue and to make arrangements with the competent local authorities of that place to disembark the rescued persons without further delay. In a statement this morning, the Government said the tanker was instructed to turn back and take the migrants to the closest safe port of call, which was Libya. A Government...