Source: World Evangelical Alliance, April 23, 2015
The capsizing of a boat carrying an estimated 850 desperate men, women, and children from Libya to the shores of Southern Europe has once again put the dangerous human migration route across the Mediterranean into the public spotlight. Only 28 were rescued.
Assuming that this devastating death toll is confirmed, a total of 1,600 lives will have been lost in the waters between January 1 and April 20, 2015. During this same period, more than 36,000 people reached the shores of Southern Europe. In 2014, 219,000 migrants survived the voyage. 3,500 migrants died at sea.
The United Nations, governments, humanitarian agencies, and faith leaders are struggling to come up with a satisfactory response to this unprecedented crisis in the region.
» Read full story with links to source material, resources, and suggestions on how we should respond.
» Also read On Migration in the Mediterranean (the Arabist) and see, on an interactive map, answers to a question Oxfam raised about which countries are giving their “fair share” to assist Syrian refugees (IRIN).