EU Leaders Meet Amid Escalated Migrant Crisis in Mediterranean

By James Mackenzie and Robin Emmott

CATANIA, Italy/LUXEMBOURG April 20 (Reuters) – The European Union proposed doubling the dimensions of its Mediterranean search and rescue operations on Monday, as the primary our bodies had been introduced ashore of some 900 folks feared killed within the deadliest shipwreck whereas attempting to succeed in Europe.

Three different rescue operations had been underway on Monday to avoid wasting a whole bunch extra migrants in peril on overloaded vessels making the journey from the north coast of Africa to Europe.

The mass deaths have prompted shock in Europe, the place a call to cut back naval operations final yr appears to have elevated the dangers for migrants with out decreasing their numbers.

“The situation in the Mediterranean is dramatic. It cannot continue like this,” stated European Council President Donald Tusk, calling a unprecedented summit of EU leaders for Thursday to plan cease human traffickers and enhance rescue efforts.

Malta’s Prime Minister Joseph Muscat stated as many as 900 folks might have died in Sunday’s catastrophe off the coast of Libya when a big boat capsized. That is the very best loss of life toll in fashionable instances amongst migrants, who’re trafficked within the tens of 1000’s in rickety vessels throughout the Mediterranean.

In Vienna, greater than 3,000 folks together with President Heinz Fischer gathered at a memorial service for the lifeless. The demostrators put candles on an inflatable raft of their reminiscence.

EU ministers held a second of silence at a gathering to debate the disaster in Luxembourg. The bloc’s government, the European Commission, introduced a ten level plan to handle the disaster, which would come with doubling the dimensions and the funding of “Triton”, an EU naval operation within the Mediterranean.

But even that would depart the operation smaller and fewer well-funded than an Italian mission deserted final yr as a consequence of prices and home opposition to sea rescues that might appeal to extra migrants.

“SLAVERY”

Italy and Malta had been working to rescue one other two migrant boats with round 400 folks off the coast of Libya on Monday. Hundreds of kilometres (miles) to the east, coast guards had been struggling to avoid wasting scores of migrants from one other vessel destroyed after working aground off the Greek island of Rhodes.

Greek coast guards stated at the very least three folks had been killed there. Television photos confirmed survivors clinging to floating particles whereas rescuers pulled them from the waves.

Italy’s Prime Minister Matteo Renzi in contrast the smuggling of migrants throughout the Mediterranean to the African slave commerce of centuries in the past. “When we say we are in the presence of slavery we are not using the word just for effect,” he stated.

European officers are struggling to provide you with a coverage to reply extra humanely to an exodus of migrants travelling by sea from Africa and Asia to Europe, with out worsening the disaster by encouraging extra to depart.

“Search and rescue alone is not a silver bullet,” stated German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere. “If you just organise search and rescue, criminals who get the refugees on board will send more boats.”

Nevertheless, Chancellor Angela Merkel stated that alongside efforts to struggle trafficking, extra needs to be performed to avoid wasting these at sea: “We will do everything to prevent further victims from perishing in the most agonising way on our doorstep.”

The vessel overturned and sank off the coast of Libya on Sunday when passengers rushed to at least one aspect to draw consideration from a passing service provider ship.

A Bangladeshi survivor instructed police there had been 950 passengers onboard, a lot of them locked into the maintain and decrease deck, in response to the International Organization for Migration. Officials cautioned the determine was an off-the-cuff estimate.

In the Maltese capital Valletta, coast-guard officers introduced ashore 24 corpses discovered to this point. Wearing white protecting fits, they carried the victims in body-bags off the Italian ship Gregoretti and deposited them in hearses as survivors seemed on from the deck.

Twenty-eight survivors rescued to this point had been to be taken on the identical boat to the Sicilian port of Catania.

In Greece greater than 90 folks had been rescued from the boat wrecked off the coast of Rhodes: “We have recovered three bodies so far – that of a man, a woman and a child,” a coast guard official stated.

Among these calling for extra compassion from Europe had been the United Nations human rights chief and Pope Francis.

“This is a humanitarian emergency that involves us all,” the IOM’s Italy Director Federico Soda stated, calling for a mission equal to the Italian operation to be relaunched instantly.

LIBYA CHAOS

If the toll is confirmed in Sunday’s tragedy, as many as 1,800 migrants can have died to this point attempting to cross the Mediterranean for the reason that begin of this yr. The IOM estimates round 21,000 made the voyage efficiently.

In comparability, by the tip of April final yr, fewer than 100 had died out of 26,000 who crossed.

The variety of migrants usually surges in the summertime, which means far larger numbers are prone to try the voyage in coming months. In complete final yr 174,000 made the journey efficiently and round 3,200 died.

The IOM says a whole bunch of 1000’s of individuals might be planning to aim the crossing from Libya, now in a lawless state with two competing governments at warfare with one another and incapable of policing people-smuggling gangs.

Renzi stated a army operation in Libya was not on the desk, whereas Malta’s Muscat stated the United Nations ought to mandate a power to struggle people-traffickers in Libya.

Rights group Amnesty International stated Thursday’s summit could be a litmus take a look at of Europe’s dedication to avoid wasting lives within the Mediterranean, calling for a strong rescue mission. Bernard Ryan, professor of migration regulation at Leicester University, instructed Reuters: “It’s a myth to think there’s some other solution”.

Last week round 400 migrants had been reported to have died trying to succeed in Italy from Libya when their boat capsized.

Northern EU international locations have to this point largely left rescue operations to southern states similar to Italy. According to the IOM, Italian coast guards, navy and business ships had rescued 10,000 migrants within the Mediterranean prior to now few days. (Additional reporting by Chris Scicluna in Valletta, Adrian Croft and Tom Körkemeier in Luxembourg, Angeliki Koutantou and Renee Maltezou in Athens, Gavin Jones and Isla Binnie in Rome and Alex Schuller in Vienna; writing by Peter Graff; modifying by Sophie Walker and Philippa Fletcher)