In the Mediterranean, rescue ships struggle against raging waves, and volunteers risk their lives to rescue migrants, but strict legal restrictions hinder the success of these relief initiatives. MEDITERRANEAN CEMETERY., tells the story of the rescued and rescuers TheTeam accompanied the ship “Life Support”, an Italian volunteer NGO rescue ship operating in the Mediterranean Sea to rescue refugees fleeing wars, documenting the rescue operation exclusively and directly, and monitoring the feelings and goals of the volunteer team on board the ship.
The process of preparing and preparing the program "The Story Continues" to accompany the rescue trip took more than three months, in addition to reviewing the dates and permissions of several ships, between three and four ships, until reaching the moment of arrangement with the "Life Support" ship, which the Italian authorities allowed to conduct the search and rescue operation. There, the program closely monitored the mechanism of searching for migrant boats and trying to find them before they sink. The film revealed several obstacles during the search and rescue operation, including fake calls reaching rescue ships and the rescue team's struggle to determine the credibility of each call in cooperation with reconnaissance aircraft.
During the presence of the "The Story Continues" program on board the rescue ship for 16 days in the Mediterranean, the ship was able to receive a signal from a migrant boat in the middle of the sea, the majority of whose passengers were women and children.
The investigation documented the obstacles faced by the rescue crew while trying to save a boat of migrants from drowning, who suffered from malnutrition and extreme fear due to the rough waves that threatened to capsize their small rubber boat at any moment. However, the "Life Support" ship was able to save the migrants.
After that, "The Story Continues" moves with the rescue team, upon the request of the Italian authorities, to leave the search and rescue area to the designated port in northern Italy on a five-day trip. This strategy followed by the Italian government by allocating distant ports hinders the ability of NGOs to disembark survivors quickly, which affects their ability to save more lives and increases unnecessary costs for operations.
The episode (The Mediterranean Cemetery) of the "The Story Continues" program was broadcast in conjunction with World Migrants Day in 2024.
