Deaths in Search of Solace - the Peril of Migrants on the Mediterranean in the Past Week

That the desperately displaced would not be hindered by any obstacle in their search for solace and for comfort is clearly exemplified by the risk taken by migrants in the Middle East and in North Africa in their attempts to reach European soil.

Last week, according to the United Nations Refugee Agency(UNHCR), some 700 migrants perished in three shipwrecks on the Mediterranean Sea, south of Italy, while another 13,000 migrants were rescued in the week signaling an increase of activity on the seas during better weather conditions in late Spring.

According to reports by the Associated Press(AP) and the BBC-News, last Thursday some 550 migrants were lost to the sea after departing the Libyan port of Sabratha. Survivors said the vessel had no engine and was being towed by another when it sank on the Mediterranean.

Last Wednesday, another migrant  vessel capsized south of Italy carrying 100 hopefuls to their deaths. And again on Friday, another vessel sank killing 45, while an unspecified number of victims remain missing at sea with 135 rescued. As UNHCR place the number dead at 700, the BBC-News reported that the MSF Sea group speculates that the number of dead could be as high as 900.

A fortunate 600 migrants were rescued at sea south of Italy yesterday and with other survivors, they were being transported to the Italian ports of Taranto and Pozzallo. Ships from the European Union have placed the number or arriving migrants at 13,000 in the past week. 

Late Spring has brought better weather and an increasing number of migrants to the Mediterranean waters as they seek comfort from conflict and hardships in north Africa. This migrant route to Europe via Italy is experiencing a hive of activity compared to the another route via Greece.