ANKARA

Migrants on Wednesday hijacked a cargo ship Elhiblu 1, which rescued them off the coast of Libya, the Italian interior minister said. 

"These are not migrants in distress, they are pirates, they will only see Italy through a telescope,” Matteo Salvini said in a Twitter post.

“This is clearly a case of organized crime. Our ports remain closed," Salvini added.

The ship with 108 migrants on board is now sailing towards Malta, said Mediterranea Saving Humans, a non-governmental organization.

There were six-member crew -- including Turkish captain, four Indians and one Libyan -- in the 52-meter-long ship.

A warship belonging to the Libyan Coast Guard Command had moved to intervene in the hijacked ship.