Teenage African migrants accused of hijacking tanker after sea rescue

One of the migrants charged with hijacking the merchant ship Elhiblu 1 is escorted by a police officer out of the Courts of Justice in Valletta, Malta, March 30, 2019. REUTERS/Darrin Zammit Lupi

VALLETTA (Reuters) - Three teenage migrants were charged in a Maltese court on Saturday with hijacking a small commercial tanker that had rescued them and others off the coast of Libya.

The three, who have pleaded not guilty, were among 108 Africans rescued by the El Hiblu 1 tanker this week. They are accused of threatening the crew on Wednesday to try to force the boat to go to Malta and not take them back to Libya.