Banksy-funded migrant rescue boat detained in Italy after saving 37 people

A rescue boat financed by Banksy has been seized by Italian authorities after being involved in an effort to rescue 37 people from the central Mediterranean sea, the British street artist and the vessel’s crew have said on social media.

The move comes just days after an inflatable boat carrying dummy refugees was launched into the crowd during a set by the British rock band Idles at the Glastonbury festival, a stunt masterminded by the anonymous graffiti artist and criticised by the UK home secretary, James Cleverly, as “vile”.

In a statement posted on his Instagram channel on Wednesday, Banksy said the migrant rescue vessel he funds, the MV Louise Michel, had on Monday night “rescued 17 unaccompanied children from the central Mediterranean”.

He added: “As punishment, the Italian authorities have detained it – which seems vile and unacceptable to me.”

Italy’s interior ministry has been contacted for comment.

The MV Louise Michel is a bright pink former French navy vessel that was bought with proceeds from the sale of Banksy artwork and is operated by a group of activists. It is named after a French feminist anarchist and features a Banksy artwork depicting a girl in a life vest holding a heart-shaped safety buoy.

Related: Banksy funds refugee rescue boat operating in Mediterranean

The MV Louise Michel’s own social media account also stated the vessel had been detained by Italian authorities in the port of Lampedusa for 20 days, after one day at sea and the rescue of 37 people.

“Our crew was ordered to disembark all survivors to Pozzallo, Sicily,” it said. “As the weather on the route was predicted to be too bad for a safe journey, our crew decided to seek shelter close to Lampedusa where, during the night, we then got permission to disembark all survivors.”

The crew of the MV Louise Michel added: “Later yesterday, we were informed that the ship is now detained for not following the order to disembark in Sicily.” They describe the ship’s detention as a “political game” and called for the vessel’s release.

The MV Louise Michel was detained in March 2023 after responding to a distress call in the central Mediterranean. At the time, Italian authorities said the vessel had violated new protocols introduced by Italy’s far-right government, “complicating a delicate rescue coordination work” at a time when hundreds of other migrant boats arrived in Lampedusa.