Italy have called for an emergency summit of European Union leaders following the latest migrant boat tragedy in the Mediterranean.
Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said Rome would be seeking the extraordinary meeting after up to 700 people were feared to have drowned when a boat carrying them towards Italy capsized off Libya.
Mr Renzi said: "We are working to ensure this meeting can be held by the end of the week, it has to be a priority."
He described the people smuggling behind the migrant crisis as "scourge" that Europe had to address.
The Italian initiative came as the EU came under fire over what NGOs termed a tragedy that may have been avoided if Italy had maintained its large-scale search-and-rescue operation off its southern shores.
The Mare Nostrum mission was suspended at the end of last year after Italy's EU partners refused to help with the ongoing cost of running it.
There was a bitter row over whether the life-saving operation was unintentionally encouraging migrants and asylum-seekers to attempt the perilous crossing from north Africa to Europe.
Earlier, The EU said it is organising an urgent meeting of foreign and interior ministers after the latest migrant boat disaster in the Mediterranean was feared to have killed up to 700 people.
In a statement, the European Commission said: "For as long as there is war and hardship in our neighbourhood near and far, people will continue to seek a safe haven on European shores.
"And as long as countries of origin and transit do not take action to prevent these desperate trips, people will continue to put their lives at risk."
French President Francois Hollande had earlier called for a meeting on the crisis.
He called for more maritime and aerial surveillance after the latest incident which he said could be the "worst catastrophe in recent years" in the Mediterranean.
Authorities rescued 28 people in the incident, which happened just off Libyan waters, south of the southern Italian island of Lampedusa.
A police official said 24 bodies had been recovered so far.
If confirmed, the death toll would bring the total number of dead since the beginning of the year to more than 1,500.
The new deaths fuelled calls for a stronger response from Europe to the increasingly deadly migrant crisis playing out in the Mediterranean.
International aid groups and Italian authorities have criticised Europe's so-called "Triton" border protection operation, which recently replaced a more comprehensive Italian search-and-rescue mission.
"They are literally trying to find people alive among the dead floating in the water," he added.
There was still no decision on where the survivors and the bodies that had been recovered would be taken.
The boat is believed to have capsized when the migrants shifted to one side of the overcrowded vessel as a merchant ship approached.
A spokeswoman for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Carlotta Sami said that: "The first details came from one of the survivors who spoke English and who said that at least 700 people, if not more, were on board."
She said: " The boat capsized because people moved to one side when another vessel that they hoped would rescue them approached."
Source: AFP/Reuters
http://www.rte.ie/
19/4/15
Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said Rome would be seeking the extraordinary meeting after up to 700 people were feared to have drowned when a boat carrying them towards Italy capsized off Libya.
Mr Renzi said: "We are working to ensure this meeting can be held by the end of the week, it has to be a priority."
He described the people smuggling behind the migrant crisis as "scourge" that Europe had to address.
The Italian initiative came as the EU came under fire over what NGOs termed a tragedy that may have been avoided if Italy had maintained its large-scale search-and-rescue operation off its southern shores.
The Mare Nostrum mission was suspended at the end of last year after Italy's EU partners refused to help with the ongoing cost of running it.
There was a bitter row over whether the life-saving operation was unintentionally encouraging migrants and asylum-seekers to attempt the perilous crossing from north Africa to Europe.
Earlier, The EU said it is organising an urgent meeting of foreign and interior ministers after the latest migrant boat disaster in the Mediterranean was feared to have killed up to 700 people.
In a statement, the European Commission said: "For as long as there is war and hardship in our neighbourhood near and far, people will continue to seek a safe haven on European shores.
"And as long as countries of origin and transit do not take action to prevent these desperate trips, people will continue to put their lives at risk."
French President Francois Hollande had earlier called for a meeting on the crisis.
He called for more maritime and aerial surveillance after the latest incident which he said could be the "worst catastrophe in recent years" in the Mediterranean.
Authorities rescued 28 people in the incident, which happened just off Libyan waters, south of the southern Italian island of Lampedusa.
A police official said 24 bodies had been recovered so far.
If confirmed, the death toll would bring the total number of dead since the beginning of the year to more than 1,500.
The new deaths fuelled calls for a stronger response from Europe to the increasingly deadly migrant crisis playing out in the Mediterranean.
International aid groups and Italian authorities have criticised Europe's so-called "Triton" border protection operation, which recently replaced a more comprehensive Italian search-and-rescue mission.
"They are literally trying to find people alive among the dead floating in the water," he added.
There was still no decision on where the survivors and the bodies that had been recovered would be taken.
The boat is believed to have capsized when the migrants shifted to one side of the overcrowded vessel as a merchant ship approached.
A spokeswoman for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Carlotta Sami said that: "The first details came from one of the survivors who spoke English and who said that at least 700 people, if not more, were on board."
She said: " The boat capsized because people moved to one side when another vessel that they hoped would rescue them approached."
Source: AFP/Reuters
http://www.rte.ie/
19/4/15
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EU member states should take urgent action to protect migrants, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said in a statement Sunday, calling the latest migrant boat disaster "unacceptable."...
ReplyDelete"We [the EU] need to save human lives all together, as all together we need to protect our borders and to fight the trafficking of human beings," Mogherini said.
EU foreign ministers will discuss the issue of immigration on Monday at a meeting in Luxembourg, the EU top diplomat added.....http://sptnkne.ws/eyA
Statement by European Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship, Dimitris Avramopoulos and Minister of Interior of Spain, Jorge Fernández Díaz..
ReplyDeleteBrussels, 19 April 2015
In view of the latest tragedy in the Mediterranean, European Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship, Dimitris Avramopoulos and Spain's Minister of the Interior Jorge Fernández Díaz, have decided to postpone their visit to Ceuta and Melilla in Spain.
Commissioner Avramopoulos stated:
"The latest tragedy in the Mediterranean is a stark reminder that we need to take bold actions to deal with the growing migration crisis. Tomorrow, I will travel to Luxembourg to participate in the Foreign Affairs Council which will discuss migration in light of the recent events. My visit to Ceuta and Melilla remains one of my priorities and I expect that a new date will be set soon."
Minister of the Interior Jorge Fernández Díaz stated:
"I would like to express my deep sorrow for today's tragedy in the Mediterranean. There is an urgent need take action and to respond effectively to this humanitarian crisis."
http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_STATEMENT-15-4801_en.htm?locale=en
Nouveau naufrage avec plus de 300 migrants, "pas les moyens de les secourir"...
ReplyDeleteUn bateau avec plus de 300 personnes à bord est en train de sombrer en Méditerranée, a annoncé lundi l'Organisation internationale pour les migrations (OIM), qui a reçu un appel à l'aide d'une personne sur cette embarcation affirmant que 20 passagers sont morts.....rtbf.be
20/4/15
Two arrested after migrant boat capsized off Libya...
ReplyDeleteThe Tunisian captain and a Syrian crew member of a boat that capsized off Libya on Sunday, killing hundreds of migrants, have been arrested on suspicion of people smuggling.
They were among 28 survivors aboard a coast guard vessel that arrived in Sicily late last night.
After speaking to survivors of the disaster, the United Nations refugee agency has confirmed 800 migrants died in the shipwreck off the Libya coast.
"We can say that 800 are dead," said Carlotta Sami, spokeswoman for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Italy today.........rte.ie
21/4/15