triton will be turned into the european search and rescue mission. more boats, more money, and a new mandate being talked about. help shall be given t italy and greece. particularly help with processing the refugees that arrive. the problem that many european interior ministers have here is that people just sort of float away from italy, they make their way to the north in an illegal manner. nobody knows where they are and who they are. they want to change that. plus there will be a step in the way of the redistribution of recognized war refugees, people who have to be protected in the european union. they will be distributed according to an allocation key. brent: more equality there. what you are talking about is improving what already exists. a lot of the criticism at this meeting has been of things outside of europe, for example, the crisis in libya or the problem with human traffickers in africa. these are things that europe really cannot change. is there a sense of almost helplessness? reporter: of course there is because there are some problems

that's where the key difference between the mare nostrum and triton operation. a border protection force. it patrols to around 30 nautical miles to the european coast. but leaders say it is a point of technicality and didn't make a difference in its ability to save lives. when it comes to search and rescue, when it comes to emergencies, the triton force the responsible in accordance with the lawis of the sea. another key point that european lead verse been talking about during the week is the actual destruction or capture of people smuggling boats. they haven't given up on that idea. they remain committed to it and have talked about it again in the course of the meeting. even insofar as they go away, do research and work out just how that can be accomplished. what possible methods can be used that would be in accordance with international law. and human rights op gagss. phil black, cnn, london. >> the election in the uk now just days away. coming up in the beginning of may and cnn is getting ready to air a ground breaking interactive debate featuring candidates

. >> six months ago operation triton, to the dismay, hundreds of rescued migrants were brought on shore operation triton may have meant a circle back, the italian coast guard is still operating autonomously. it picked up 300 migrants from a stricken vessel. shown extraordinary compassion to the migrants. the port of pisallo received 30,000 without any protest or complaint. the mayor of pisallo says compassion is the only reaction to such a situation. are. >> translator: we can't push these people away, we have to save them. august 2013 we had one boat containing 45 corpses. seeing that was the most horrible experience of my life. 45 of bodies almost liquefied. >> europe still has no comprehensive plan to tackle the issue. paul brennan, al jazeera pisallo, sicily. >> she was the jewel of the french navy, lemoyne that sailed to the united states to assist. jonah hull reports from the french atlantic coast. >> reporter: some volunteer crew members have little sailing experience. enthusiasm got them aboard and a taste for adventure. they're about to set sail on a replica 18th century warshi

the eu operation triton was only officially responsible for protecting europe's borders. the plan is to expand its mission and double its funding to 6 million euros, but even then, it's budget would be considerably smaller than the italian operation that triton replaced. traffickers are exploiting the migrant crisis. the eu aims to curb trafficking. proposals include locating the boats of potential traffickers and destroying them. eu investigators would also try to track down those masterminding the operations and freeze their financing, but traffickers are not the cause of the migrant crisis. as long as europe does nothing to stop the breakup of states such as syria and refuses to open up legal channels for entry to the eu, migrant deaths will continue. the biggest conflict within the eu is over the number of asylum seekers each country takes an. now brussels hopes to relieve southern european nations like italy with a new distribution model. in a pilot project, the eu aims to resettle 5000 migrants relocating them proportionately between all 28 eu states, but member sta

with a third of the budget and resources, furthermore triton doesn't have full support of eu 21 of 28ber states actually signed up and uk refused for example saying it encouraged migrants to make the journey and eu meeting will take place in luxonburg where dominick cane is and what can we expect out of the eu minister's meeting there? >> reporter: well sammy, the meeting is well underway in the building behind me to my left and shortly before the meeting began the eu foreign policy chief spoke to the press and said she felt that having seen and witnessed the events of resent days felt for eui was imperative to act. >> i felt a moral duty to concentrate on our responsibility as europeans to prevent this kind of tragedies to happen again and again. let me say that the main issue here is to build together a common sense of european responsibility of what is happening in the mediterranean knowing there is no easy solution and no magic solution but there is a responsibility we have to exercise together as europeans and in consistent and coherent way. >> reporter: well the minister's meeti

operation called triton will certainly assist. it was originally going to be doubled.t was the prediction earlier in the week so that eu leaders realized that at that simple wasn't going to be enough so they tripled it. that said it really only brings it up to the same level of last year. so it's not actually a big increase on the past. the other question mark is about the mandate of triton terrifically speaking it's only a border control operation. will it actually really be used for search and rescue? that's an open question. the other thing that came out of the summit, i mean one of the other main things that came out of the summit was this idea that there can be some kind of proactive operation to target smugglers' boats traffickers boats before they even leave the thereharbor before people are even put on them. the question mark will be raised by france at the u.n. security council, that's certainly what the french president said. he will go to the u.n. security council because there is a question mark as to whether in international law there could be a military a

triton is a specifically border control patrolling type of operation.s not strictly a search and patrol operation. so will those extra ships that are being pledged actually be able to go out and look pro actively for people who are out on the high seas in flimsy boats that have left libya. that's not clear yet. that said the reaction to what was decide in brussels huh brussels has been largely positive. some describe it as a child step forward and save the children working particularly with the unaccompanied minors coming off boats, described it as a critical breakthrough as well. the maltese prime minister said, whatever resources you put in to it, it will never be enough. that's joseph muscat the maltese prime minister. so a glimmer of hope, but it depends on who you listen to as to whether it will actually make a very serious effective difference out there on the high seas. >> paul brennan in catania paul, thank you. >>> now, armenians around the world are marking 100 years since the massacre of their an an sisterses during the first world war. armen

triton is limited to a 30-naught cal mile zone from the coast of italy and we know of course that all the ship wrecks actually happened just in front and very close to the libyan coast mainly. and although these ships can actually come to the rescue when it is necessary, it will take them a lot more time to get there if they are basically having to be based within that 30 naught naughttical mile zone. >> it's very clear that internationally that's a clear violation of international refugee law as it stands. most of the boats depart from libya and that would clearly be a violation of international law. as far as we know, this does not happen so far but it's clear that the european council conclusions adopted yesterday very much focus on containing refugees in northern africa and do everything possible in order to prevent people from actually moving on to europe. and that also includes cooperation with the countries. so it remains to be seen what the actual implementation of those actions is going to look like. >> there will be no talks at the time as long as the houthis and the militia

operation triton, run by frontex. italy's correa de la serra the editorial says the tragic deaths of the mediterranean are quote evidence of another sad reality the nonexistence of europe. the article equates the smugglers to slave traders and lack of punishment louse the cycle to continue. deutsche vella says the estimated deaths of he 700 migrants makes it high time for the eu to act. mourning from politicians who deem search and rescue operations too expensive. >> in china thousands of competitors are welcoming the spring season with a colorful festival of kites. the high flying tradition dates back centuries. and as margaga ortiga reports. >> a sign of better days ahead. no one can stop kite enthusiasts in wee weifung. he comesweifung. he comes from a generation of kite enthusiasts deemed impure in the cultural revolution. >> translator: the difference in chinese kites and foreign kites chinese ones focus a lot on shapes and paintings of kites. >> reporter: it is a traditional art form that he has turned into a bu

replaced it with operation triton. it has a third of the budget a narrower geographical scope and as a result 5,000 have been rescued and more are drowning at a higher rate. >> right, you say that - we have to make a distinction between human traffickers, and people smugglers. libya is a starting point for many migrants when we look at the route to europe through the mediterranean. how is the political vacuum the chaos, violence in libya contributing to the crisis in terms of allowing people smugglers to thrive. >> we have to break down where people are coming from. many people are coming from syria. a number are refugees who can't get protection where they come from because lebanon and jordan close their borders. many are coming from somalia and eritrea, and others from africa. libya is a jump off point because of its fragility as a state and weak governance. libya has 400,000 misplaced people. it's easy for them to be preyed on. it's important to recognise they are not traffickers, as distinct from smuggling, the dis

. >> reporter: six months ago acknowledge operation triton, the sicilian port of pisallo after their overcrowded boat was taken over by coast guard. search and is rescue mission in the mediterranean. the italian coast guard is still operating autonomously. when it picked up more than 300 migrant survivors extraordinary compassion to the migrants. the port of pisalho received 30,000 last year without any protest or complaint. the may i respectfully says the suffering is the reaction. >> we can't push these people away, it's not right. we can't turn them away. the boat of last year was friefer bodies almost liquefied inside the notes. i want to be the mayor who welcomes the immigrant not the mayor who receives the bodies. >> so far this year alone it's estimated that nearly a thousand people have lost their lives yet europe has no comprehensive way to solve the issue. paul brennan, al jazeera sicily. >>> we'll at tell you why they enjoy their traditional laws plus. >> war of independence more than two years ago. ago. >> "faultlines". al jazeera america's hard-hitting... >> today they w

at me and one is for example the idea that they will reenforce and upgrade the current operation triton one figure is to double the amount of funding with boats that are out there and doubling it would still not bring it up to the level of last year because currently it's a third of the type of the level of operations of last year. so doubling it simply would not bring it up to last year's level. the other thing that went out to me is point two the effort to capture or destroy vessels used by smugglers. reality is out here in the mediterranean is that the type of boats being used are an ramshackle collection of old dinghys and telling in the port which is a smuggler's boat and which is a legitimate fishing boat and let alone special forces can go in and put holes in them so they can't get to sea. it's fraught with difficulty. they are fine words but it's going to be very difficult to put some of these things into practical implementation. >> let's find an easy way and thanks for now paul brennan. only 27 survivors from that shipwreck off the libya coast on sunday and just a few of the m

they also stressed the fact that the european operation triton is not a humanitarian respiration -- not humanitarian rescue but border control. european ships can only patrol as far as 55 kilometers away from italian shores, from european shores, and we know that shipwrecks happen further away in the mediterranean sea, and the international waters so when the distress calls our sense, european patrol ships-- callass are sent, european patrol ships are too far away as the visit is too late. host: natalia mendoza, thank you for that from italy. here in paris, sid ahmed ghlam is accused of -- his sister says he she did not notice a radical change in his behavior and he has been manipulated by extremists. ghlam was arrested sunday after accidentally shooting himself in his leg. weapons and bullet-proof vests were found in his home. take a listen to the french prime minister. prime minister valls: this type of individual does not work alone. we saw that in the attacks in january. there is a network and also logistical soup or. it is important been -- logistical support. it is important that

this is under the title operation triton. they're sending out rescue ships and search parties to keep an eye on a limited part of the mediterranean around italian waters. they're doing that because they say it is too expensive. something like 900 million euros a month to patrol the entire area. they have to scale back the operation. as a result we need more money from our european partners to help us save lives. we know there will be an emergency eu leaders summit on thursday and the request will be made in person by prime minister matteo renz a. -- prime minister renzi. they need more resources for the crisis. it is not just search and rescue. it is tackling trafficking. it is about working and liaising with local law enforcement in those countries to make sure the traffickers do not get more of a foothold on those coastal areas to send migrants across the waters. the human estimates this is probably the most dangerous stretch of water anywhere in the world. in 2014 something like one person for every 50 that attempted to cr

leaders approved a tripling of funding for the operation triton. germany and france committed two ships, the u.k. three. other nations pledged boats, planes and helicopters to save lives. french president francis hollande will seek a u.n. resolution to stop smugglers boats. there was no discussion on what to do with the thousands arriving in europe. >> reporter: these are the bodies of few of the hundreds lost to the mediterranean, to be recovered and laid to rest in malta. the deaths prompted a rethink from europe about its commitment to its humanitarian obligations on the southern border. outside the european council meeting the coffin was the motif for the protesters outraged people were left to die in the sea close to rich countries. "they should give refuge to all of them", said this man, families included. >> many complained about basic rights in belgium where they were going to resettle. these grievances have been brought to a head. easy for the protesters to be about anger and injustice. there's something else - the campaigners see in the t

this is the context where european leaders will gather, looking at ways to expand operation triton that works in the waters to give it more ships and aerial surveillance. they'll be looking at contentious issues of whether refugees should be resettled around europe. that's contentious politically for countries, sensitive. and a proposal - this is from a leaked draft, of whether they should undertake systematic efforts to capture and destroy vessel before they are used by traffickers. if you talk about destroying them you'll destroy them at source that means going to libyan ports. who knows, using military force. that will be interesting to see how bold european leaders are in that regard. >>> al jazeera's laurence lee joins us from brussels where the meeting is taking place. we know the italian prime minister says he needs more help from the e.u. to deal with the crisis. is he likely to get the help from the meeting when it centres. >> i think on the basic terms, what they are trying to do is give the thought that they are in control of events rather than being led by them. their argume

funded to the tune of $10 million a month was scaled back and overtaken by a small operation called triton a border control, funded at $3 million a third of the budget. previous operation. it's to protect europe's borders, not a proactive search and rescue. humanitarians say that leaves migrants to drown. it's not doing enough to rescue them from the water, it's leaving them to their own fate and that is not good enough for humanitarian groups. it's polarizing opinion. there are others saying europe should follow the example of australia and turn the migrants away and that may deter them from setting off in the first place. it's a polarizing debate. >> paul brennan from sicily >>> in south africa thousands of foreigners are seeking shelter in police stations and refugee camps in johannesburg. the south african ruling a.n.c. party condemn the zenno fobing attacks against immigrant shopkeepers, six have been killed and thousands forced from their homes, attackers tell them to get out of the country. our correspondent spoke to some victims of the violence in durban. >> reporter: these migrant

we now have a triton system, a lot less comprehensive. a right-wing paper criticizes brussels' hypocrisy. it has quite a difficult headline "sorry for the dead," quoting brussels, blaming the eu for everything. genie: i know in france there has been a lot of soul-searching about the eu'e role i -- eu's role in this. reporter: "the shipwreck of european politics." the eu still has no solution. the u.k.'s independent paper highlights the eu's failure. it asks the question how many more lives will be allowed to die before our leaders put shared humanity before political posturing. there is the same sense that politics is being put ahead of humanitarian concerns. genie: there's a lot of focus on what these people are running from. in many cases, it is war zones and conflicts. reporter: absolutely. that's being put into sharp relief by a new video that has emerged supposedly from the islamic state group, sharing the beheading of dozens of ethiopian christians in libya. this is "a new york -- a "new york times" article about that. essentially,

operation triton may have meant a scaling back of the search and rescue operation but that doesn't meanstopped all together. this boat behind me was just 40 miles from the libyan coast when it picked up more than 300 survivors. the citizens of the ports have shown extraordinary compassion to the migrants. this port received 30,000 last year. the mayor says sympathy is the only reaction to such suffering. >> translator: we can't push these people away. it's not right. we have to save them. they are human beings. in august 2014 we had one boat containing 45 corpses. seeing that was the most horrible experience of my whole life. i want to be the mayor who welcomes migrants not the mayor who receives the bodies of immigrants. >> reporter: we may never know how many are drowning every day, but so far this year alone it is estimated nearly a thousand people have lost their lives, and yet europe still has no comprehensive plan to tackle the issue. paul brennan, al jazeera. >>> syria has been marking its national day with no end in site to the four-year old civil war. many have fled to lebanon

on thursday includes specifically recommending or expanding the powers of what is called operation tritondestroy the boats of these smuggling gangs. but we have got to be honest when we talk at source invariably in this part of the mediterranean, the source is libya itself. and that is pretty much lawless territory. it's an area where european governments would not feel safe trying to send, you know their police forces their detective forces so yes, you can deal with the problem to a certain extent out at sea, but you are not really going to you know -- grab the problem at source because that is where the gangs are based. >> okay. thank you, barnaby phillips there in sicily. ♪ >>> egypt's deposed leader mohammed morsi has been sentenced to 20 years in prison. he was the country's first democratically elected president but was toppled in a military coup in 2013. tuesday's verdict is the first morsi has received since he was ousted. he still faces other trials. >> reporter: mohammed morsi escaped the death penalty. he has been sentenced to 20 years in prison without the possibility of parol

and officials say they will work to strengthen operations triton and pa sigh done. >> translator: ourirst priority has to be improving sea operations so fewer people die. secondly we know the push factor of migration will not let up as long as conditions in north africa remain unstable. >> reporter: the e.u. has been criticized for a slow response to the crisis. >>> egypt's first democratically elected president has been sentenced to two decades in prison. he was convicted of inciting the killing of protesters in 2012. >> reporter: mohammed morsi -- >> reporter: mohammed morsi narrowly escaped the death penalty. he has been sentenced to 20 years in prison without the possibility of parole for what prosecutors say was his role of the arrest and torture of protesters in 2012. three protesters were killed. he can still appeal this conviction but he also faces several other charges, including an attempt at a prison break in 2011, where some prison officers were killed. a verdict on this is expected next month. spying. he is accused of conspiring to commit terrorist acts in egypt with hama

. >> we have agreed to triple the resources available to triton our mission in the central mediterraneand to enhance its operational capability. i am happy to announce that leaders have already pledged significantly greater support including many more vessels, aircraft, and experts and also money. >>reporter: lots of refugees -- >> it's really important to change the actual policies to make them more humane stop criminalizing these communities through chasing, racial profiling, fingerprinting, all these policies need to actually be addressed and the approach is just wrong altogether. >> many leaders with an eye on elections and public opinion have to say they want to stop the deaths yet they also want to keep people they describe as irregular migrants out. the eu has now committed to avoiding a repeat of this sort of thing but the walls of fortress europe are getting higher. >>> u.s. president barack obama has apologized for the deaths of two hostages killed during a u.s. drone separation against al quaeda targets in january. an american and italian aid worker died during the operation n

europe has tripled the budget for the search and rescue operation, triton destroyed naval ships, and to destroy the boats that transport people across the sea. >> you are going to have to find a way to create safe channels for those who are entitled to protection internationally. until that happens, we're not going to solve the problem. >> reporter: safe channels aren't really the talk for europe. there has been talk about resettling 5,000 refugees but around 10,000 have already arrived here in the last two months. these eritreans were rescued from the sea two weeks ago, and are now on their way to rome from is there they want to get to sweden germany, and the u.k. >> translator: we can't find jobs in italy. it's not possible to study either. if we gave your fingerprints we would have to stay here so we didn't. we're willing to settle in any country where we can study. that's why we wish to move on. >> reporter: a forlorn boy is left behind. he has no money and speaks no english or italian. we follow him to where he is staying. at least he has friends. they say he is just 14 years ol

they took a helicopter to board a navy ship which is patrolling the italian coast as triton.n before they set off another 274 migrants were brought ashore. we have more the port augusto on the civilian coast. >> in part, ban kim moon's visit to italy and the italian coast line is all about showing solidarity and offering condolences after 1,700 people have drowned in the waters of the mediterranean this year, but i think also some serious policy discussions between him and the italian prime minister mateo renzi and the head of e.u. foreperson policy. i think if you look at what ban kim moon was saying before he arrived. he said there's no military solution to this refugee crisis and this could be taken as a veiled criticism of the european union's summary of the summit when it spoke about the need to destroy smugglers boats, the implication that they are contemplating military force particularly off the coast of libya. i think ban kim moon will be keen to hear what the europeans hear about that exactly. they may want to hear from him as to what sort of international initiativ

but eu's version now operation triton is much less well funded compared to operations and the questionether the money is there and whether the big countries like the united kingdom and germany and france are prepared to add their navel assets and military assets to try to really beef up the operation underway in the mediterranean sea and whether we will get an answer to that here today in luxonburg today is open to question. >> dominick cane there. another incident in the mediterranean nearly 100 migrants from syria rescued by the italian coast guard and found on a boat off the coast of sicily and the migrants left syria via turkey and 13 children were among those rescued. in the past hour the greek coast guard said at least three people have died after a boat carrying 83 migrants ran aground there. the latest incident in the mediterranean happened when it ran on rocks in the island of rhoades and 23 are in the hospital and say there may be more unaccounted for. they received the first shipment of french weapons in a deal over 23 million by saudi arabia and used to defends the groups a

migrants arriving on italy's mainland and europe tripled the budget for search and rescue operation tritonoy the boats that smuggling people across the sea but this is a short-term solution say charities. >> you are going to have to find a way to create legal channels safe channels for those who are entitled to protection internationally and until that happens we can destroy as many vessels as we want and we will not solve the problem. >> reporter: safe channels are not top of agenda for europe and talk of resettlingly 5,000 refugees but 25,000 migrants have already arrived across the sea in the last few months aid agency warn the number could swell to 200,000 by the end of the year. these people were rescued from the sea two weeks ago and now on their way to rome. from there they tell me they want to get to sweden germany and the uk. >> translator: we can't find jobs in italy, it's not possible to study either. if we gave our fingerprints when we arrived we have to stay here and we did not and willing to sale to any country where we can study and why we wish to move on. >> reporter: as th

so i think what you are going to see is the existing operation which is called triton which we have been about in recent days and it will expand considerably by as much as double this year and next year at least that's the commitment. more boats more helicopters and, more planes and that in theory should mean more lives saved in the mediterranean. then looking at the draft recommendations, there are some interesting proposals. i am just going to quote this is what the proposals which e.u. leaders will be looking at today. one says we also undertake systematic efforts to identify capture and destroy vessels before they are used by traffickers. that suggests some degree of military force. and when we say before they are used by traffickers the clear implication is that you might be going to libyan ports typically because that's where 90% of these boats disembark from, and br*destroying them at source and it will be very interesting to see the debates around that today and how far european governments actually commit themselves in that direction. >> all right barnaby fill nips catania. barn

on the italy's mainlands the europe has tripped the budget for the research and rescue operation tritoneployed navel sh*eu ships and vowed to destroy boats to that struggle people across the sea but this is a short-term solution say charities. >> you have to find a way to create legal channels, safer channels for those provided -- that we cannot solve the problem. >> reporter: there has been talk of vetteling 5,000 refugees but around 25,000 migrants have already arrived across the sea in the last few months. aid agencies warn that number could swell to 200,000 by the end of the year. these eritreans were rescued from the sea two weeks ago and now on their way to roam rome from there they would to get to swept, germany and the u.k. >> we can't find jobs in italy. it's not possible to study either. if we gave up on fingerprints when we arrived we would have to say here so we didn't of we are willing to settle in any country where we can sudden i. that's why we relinquish wish for move on. >> reporter: at they bore the bus a forlorn boy is left behind he has month money and speaks no engl

operation triton is run by the cost guard rather than the navy and patrols waters 150 kilometers of the italian coast. i'm joined with the director of amnesty international. welcome to the studio. >> thank you. >> why is it that when we talk about this, it is not going forward. there is a patchwork peace meal reaction. why isn't this a more joined up concrete policy. >> the 10,000 people rescued which is wonderful but the way this was done was indeed, a watch work operation scrambling whatever vessels were around and making this work. and approximately 400 people seemed to have died. so what we're calling for is exactly that. a joint operation multi country operation that is taking this seriously as it should. why that hasn't happened is more a matter of political will than anything else in our opinion. >> the countries on the front line quite often tell us here that they have been left out to pasture, that they really need help. but there has been sum success. in spain they had cooperation with morocco and that changed things. what can be done to help these countries to cooperate? a lo

. >> they have agreed to triple the resources available to triton and to enhance operational capability. it will continue to respond to the stress calls. i am happy to announce that leaders have already pledged significantly greater support including many more vessels, aircraft and experts and also money. >>reporter: lots of groups want to -- >> it's real important not to change not just the narrative but also the policies to stop criminalizing these communities. we see how they're being criminalize through chasing and fingerprinting and racial profiling. these policies need to be addressed and the approach is just wrong all together. >>reporter: many of europe's leaders with an eye on elections and public opinion have to say that they want to stop the deaths yet they also want to keep people they describe as irregular migrants out. the eu has now committed to avoiding this sort of thing bought the walls of fortremendouses europe are getting higher. -- fortress europe are getting higher. >>> lawrence we also know that france is talking about a u.n. resolution to go about destroying traf

i don't know as yet whether the operation triton and others will cover the extent and stretch, and whether they'd be arriving up to the libyan coast. if they do in the arrive there, i'm afraid the main aim that this point will be addressing might not give us the result that we want >>> part of the plan is to stop smugglers. how will that work. given the crisis that exist in syria, eritrea, somali libya - won't migrant trying to figure out other ways to get to europe. >> that will happen. that was one of the main bones of contention because, okay, you can smugglers in a particular country but i am sure that smugglers will find other routes ways and means. >> a big issue is the sharing of responsibility among the southern european countries, and the northern european countries which had better benefits. that's where many wanted to go to. once the migrants managed to make it safely to europe what happens - a lot of the nerves they are seeing an anti-immigrant backlash. could the flood of immigrants exacerbate that problem. >> what we saw from the conclusions, what the council is saying organi

triton a boarder operation was criticized by border operations. >> a withdrawal is nothing short of catastrophic. it's pushed and the decision was tape to take it down. >> since november 2014 taken down we are seeing an increase of the people who arrive and make the crossing to europe. >> we simply see less resources in place to deal with it. it results ultimately in a higher number of deaths. >> reporter: on monday trition was criticized and accused europe of not spending enough money. detention centers are at full capacity the interior ministry said it need to find space for more than 6,000 migrants. with summer approaching tens of thousands are expected to make their way to italy >>> well there are seven routes the migrants use to make their way to europe. 117,000 migrant cross the sea headed to italy. most from syria, eritrea and sub-saharan africa. the second-most travelled are the eastern mediterranean and eastern border. most of the 52,000 came from syria and afghanistan. the west african routes had more than 8,000 migrants getting into spain. most of the them were from cameroon nigeria a

in sicily the authorities are helping the few tritonned men who survived the sinking of an overcrowded boast in the early hours of sunday morning. the initial stories of the scale that have disaster have turned out to be horribly accurate. >> they have now interviewed most of the survivors of saturday's boat tragedy in the mediterranean. according to them the boat departed from tripoli, from libya on saturday morning. it had some 850 people on board. many of these were children. among those on board were some 350 people from syria somalia sierra leone mali, gambia, ivory coast and ethiopia. >> italian prosecutors say that this man, a tunisian was the captain of the boat. he was taken into custody charged with reckless homicide and causing a shipwreck. another suspected member of the crew has also been arrested. accused of assisting illegal immigration. and more details are emerging as how so many people died. >> migrants were crashed inside the fishing boat. it was at least 23 meters long. a few hundred migrants were forced into the hold at the lowest level. they were locked and preven

european leaders to endorse a plan which ministers drew up yesterday to widen the scope of operation triton of the mediterranean sea to give it more power to destroy smuggler's boats, to cover a bigger geographical area. now that will save lives and will be welcome, and i think there's an impetus of i suppose outrage, horror and shame amongst the governments at the moment but there is an awareness that there are no easy solutions to this problem, and they come with high political risks. >>> >> barnaby thank you very much indeed. >>> the italian government says 90% of the people they rescue depart from libya. europe's security agencies say there could be up to a million people waiting to leave. many are syrians fleeing civil war who make their way to istanbul and then the sudanese capitol. eritreans and somalis travel the same route from the horn of africa. there's a western route too. migrants who would have found work in libya, now find themselves in the middle of a civil war with little option but to travel further on and into europe. laura is the head of developmental studies at the univ

last week there was a lot of criticism that the european union had not put enough money into its triton program, this year's program, to try to help migrants as they come ashore. more funding, more vessels, into the search and rescue operation that again could encourage more migrants to head this way towards europe because they'll feel that if they get into trouble, they will be picked up more quickly, wolf. >> with a failed state and a lot of terror going on in libya, you can't blame these people for trying to get out. the whole country has virtually collapsed. karl penhaul in italy for us right there at catania. let's move on here's where the emergency stands right now. this according to the united nations. an estimated 35,000 migrants have crossed to europe this year. more than a third of those have done so in the past ten days. last year 3500 migrants died crossing the med der rain yan. this year so far 1600 in the first three and a half months and these numbers don't count the tragedy over the weekend or the ships calling for help right now. joining us via skype is francois capo th

save tens of thousands and perhaps 100,000 people and when that came to an end the eu brought in the tritonration which has a third of the funding of this and has not been able to gather as many people out of the mediterranean. so the question is going to be how much policy can really will -- be made and both sets are here at the same time indicates how serious the eu considers it to be but whether there will be a viable solution today is questionable. >> all right, dominick cane thanks so much. in another incident in the mediterranean nearly 100 migrants from syria rescued by the italian coast guard and found on a boat off the coast of sicily. according to the u.n. the migrants left syria via turkey 13 children were among those rescued. and we are getting reports from the greek coast guard as well saying at least three people have died after a boat carrying dozens of migrants ran aground. the latest incident in the mediterranean happened off the island of rhoades and libya is a transit for people getting in and people smugglers are able to operate ease and the two governments taking part i

yesterday, the european council decided to triple the investment in the triton initiative -- the triton operation, which is i guess you know, a fair reaction to what has been happening in the month of april, especially with the last tragedy. most of you should know by now that 900 people or more died in one single accident. 1200 people have died already on the high seas since -- the beginning of this year. it is not a problem that is going to go away, and now certainly with the season being what it is, it will be more book traffic and hopefully there will be more rescue. but it can be said that germany and sweden, in particular, have been remarkably generous in their approaches. particularly for syrian refugees coming to sweden and to germany as asylum-seekers directly, or through programs of resettlement or humanitarian admissions. we have been calling for a more generous approach using flexible visa family reunification to anything that would allow for more access, legal safe, secure access by syrian refugees, in particular to european states on a more generalized and equitable basis.