Albanian Refugee Ship Runs Italian Blockade

A boat packed with more than 1,000 Albanians made it to this southern port Sunday despite the presence of a multinational force in the Balkan country.

An Italian coast guard cutter tried to turn the 76-yard-long boat back Saturday, but it refused, arriving about 24 hours after it left Albania.

By Sunday night, more than 1,000 people had been taken off the boat, with several hundred more still aboard, the ANSA news agency said. A large number of women, several of them pregnant, and children, also were escorted off.

The government has said those without a legitimate reason to seek asylum would be ordered home, but those in need would be allowed to stay temporarily.

The four-member crew, and three others accused of throwing an Albanian man overboard, were taken into custody, officials said. Italian patrol boats saved him. The reason he was thrown off the ship was not clear.

Several of the Albanians told RAI state television that they had paid for the passage. Italian authorities said crime groups regularly charge between $470 and $880 per person for the trip.