A man who has been stuck on a migrant rescue vessel for almost a fortnight jumped overboard on Friday in a desperate attempt to reach Maltese shores.
The man was immediately rescued by crew members on board the ship. His attempt to flee was "a signal" to European countries that a solution to the impasse needed to be found immediately, a spokesman for Sea-Watch 3 told Times of Malta.
"There is a very tense situation on the ship," Ruben Neugebauer said, underlining the desperation of migrants on board who can see the Maltese coast but are barred from entering.
The 32 people aboard the Sea-Watch 3 fled Libya and were rescued on December 22. With no European country offering a safe port, the migrants have been stuck on board the ship. Another 17 were later picked up at sea.
Read: Two NGO boats leave Malta with supplies for migrants stranded at sea
The NGO vessel has been allowed to enter Maltese waters to shelter from rough weather. However, the government has been refused to offer the ship a safe port, with authorities arguing it was not in their competence to take in the rescued migrants.
"For days, they have looked at the European coast without being able to reach it," Sea-Watch tweeted.
Uno dei 32 naufraghi a bordo di #SeaWatch si è gettato in acqua cercando di raggiungere Malta.
— Sea-Watch Italy (@SeaWatchItaly) January 4, 2019
Per gg hanno guardato la costa europea senza poterla raggiungere.
In mare da 2 settimane e con alle spalle mesi di detenzione nelle prigioni libiche.
Hanno bisogno di un porto, ora. pic.twitter.com/itX4WhN9sV
Countries, including Malta, have continued "loitering", while tensions on the ship continued to increase, the spokesman said.
The people aboard were also feeling "re-traumatised" after having to face days stuck inside the ship due to the bad weather.
Malta is among the the number of countries that has refused to offer a safe port to the vessel. Conditions on board have continued to deteriorate, with food in low supply and many on board suffering seasickness.
EU member states are in talks to redistribute the 49 migrants aboard. Malta is also pushing to include 249 migrants rescued by the Armed Forces of Malta last weekend as part of a redistribution agreement.
NGO volunteers who spoke to Times of Malta feared the talks to include an additional 249 people recently rescued by the Maltese government will add to the complicated negotiations between countries.
France, the Netherlands and Germany have announced they would be willing to take part in a re-distribution agreement, but no conclusion has so far been reached.