Pope says Mediterranean is ‘Europe’s biggest cemetery’ as he mourns migrant dead
- Pope Francis remembered the thousands of migrants who had died trying to reach Europe, especially 800 who died when their boat capsized in 2015
- He also called for food aid to reach the people of Ethiopia’s conflict-wracked Tigray region
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During his Angelus prayer, he noted a ceremony taking place in Sicily to mark the April 2015 tragedy when an estimated 800 migrants heading from Libya to Italy drowned when their boat capsized.
“This symbol of so many tragedies of the Mediterranean Sea will continue to challenge the conscience of all and encourage the growth of a more united humanity, which breaks down the wall of indifference,” he said.
“Let us think about it: the Mediterranean has become Europe’s largest cemetery.”
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Thousands of people hoping for a new life in Europe set off from North Africa each year, more often than not in overcrowded, leaky boats run by unscrupulous people smugglers.
More than a dozen boats arrived on Italy’s tiny island of Lampedusa on Saturday, according to the Ansa news agency, with more than 1,200 migrants held in emergency facilities there.
But the central Mediterranean is one of the world’s deadliest migration routes. It is patrolled by a handful of charity rescue ships, who complain that EU authorities are not doing enough to help their cause.
More than 500 people have died in crossings to Italy and Malta between January and mid-May this year, according to the UN’s International Organization for Migration.
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The pope on Sunday also offered his prayers to the people of Ethiopia’s conflict-wracked Tigray region, which has been hit by famine.
“I am particularly close to the people of the Tigray region in Ethiopia, struck by a serious humanitarian crisis which exposes the poorest to famine,” he said.
“Today there is famine, there is hunger. Let us pray together for an immediate end to the violence, for everyone to be guaranteed food and health assistance, and for the return as soon as possible of social harmony.”
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What is behind the fighting in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region?
The UN has said that over 90 per cent of the more than five million people in the Tigray region need emergency food aid, and has urgently appealed for more than US$200 million to scale up its response.
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, winner of the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize, sent troops into the northern region in November to detain and disarm leaders of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, the region’s former ruling party.
He said the move came in response to TPLF attacks on federal army camps. Though he vowed the conflict would be brief, fighting continues more than six months later and reports of atrocities – including the widespread use of rape – are proliferating.
