GENEVA, June 17 (Xinhua) -- The UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR, on Sunday applauded Spain for its actions in bringing to an end a sea-rescue crisis in the Mediterranean after a ship, the Aquarius, which carried more than 600 rescued migrants was refused permission to land and disembark by Italy and Malta.
"We're grateful this ordeal is over for all involved, but this incident is something that should never have happened in the first place," said Filippo Grandi, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
The over 600 rescued people, with some having been transferred from the Aquarius to two Italian ships, arrived Sunday in the port of Valencia, east of Spain, after having been stranded in the Mediterranean Sea for over a week.
"Rescue at sea is too important a principle to jeopardize, and any wavering about disembarkation presents grave peril not just to refugees and migrants but to anyone in difficulty at sea," he noted.
