British artist Banksy funds boat to rescue refugees

British artist Banksy has financed a boat to rescue refugees.

The British street artist Banksy has financed a boat to rescue refugees. UK newspaper The Guardian run a feature article revealing the latest action by the famous artist.

The boat has een named Louise Michel, after a French feminist anarchist, set off in secrecy on 18 August from the Spanish seaport of Burriana, near Valencia, and is now in the central Mediterranean where on Thursday it rescued 89 people in distress, including 14 women and four children.

It is now looking for a safe seaport to disembark the passengers or to transfer them to a European coastguard vessel.

Banksy’s involvement in the rescue mission goes back to September 2019 when he sent an email to Pia Klemp, the former captain of several NGO boats that have rescued thousands of people over recent years.