Pope urges European countries to accept refugees from rescue ships
The fate of 49 migrants stranded on two German rescue ships off the coast of Malta remains unclear, and the Pope has called on European leaders to find a way to resolve the crisis.
Pope Francis, the leader of the world's Catholics, has warned European leaders to save refugees who are trying to disembark on two German rescue ships in the Mediterranean Sea.
On Sunday, January 6, the Pope told thousands of people in St. Peter's Square in Rome that the 49 people who were rescued from death in the Mediterranean Sea by two rescue ships have been waiting on these ships for days to disembark on a safe shore.
The Pope continued: "I warn the heads and prime ministers of European countries to express their sympathy specifically for these refugees."
Rescuers from the Sea-Watch rescue boat rescued 32 people from drowning in the Mediterranean Sea before Christmas. In late December 2018, another rescue boat, the Sea-A, rescued another 17 migrants.
The two boats were allowed to approach the Maltese coast due to bad sea conditions, but were not allowed to enter the country's shores.
Germany calls for a European solution
Malta, Italy and Spain are not willing to accept these refugees. Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini, leader of the xenophobic Northern League party, announced in an interview with the Italian newspaper Il Massero that Italy is no longer a place to accept refugees.
Salvini, who has a highly critical view of the European Union, the euro, illegal immigration and the EU's management of refugees, also stressed in a Twitter message that "Italian beaches will remain closed."
Germany and the Netherlands have announced that they are willing to accept these refugees if other European countries also announce cooperation.
A spokesman for the German Interior Ministry announced that the country has sent a message to the European Commission that Germany is willing to accept these refugees within the framework of the coordinated distribution of rescued refugees in European countries.
Refugee statistics at the United Nations
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported on Sunday, January 6, that from the end of December 2017 to mid-2018, the number of refugees increased by 300,000 to 68.8 million worldwide.
Syria has the largest number of refugees worldwide with six and a half million, Afghanistan with two million and 700 thousand, and South Sudan with two million and 500 thousand.
Source: DW
