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Image: Opielok Offshore Carriers/dpaImage: Opielok Offshore Carriers/dpa

Migrant shipwrecks in Mediterranean

Tens of thousands of people set sail across the Mediterranean each year trying to reach the European Union, often on rickety, overcrowded boats. Hundreds have died in the water in recent months, how will the EU respond?

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All Content on this topic

Two female migrants at the shore between Libya and Tunisia

Two female migrants at the shore between Libya and Tunisia

Migrants flock to Libya despite lack of law and order

Human traffickers, militias, mass graves — nothing seems to discourage migrants from coming to Libya.

The rescue ship "Sea-Eye 4"

The rescue ship "Sea-Eye 4"

German charity warns of Mediterranean refugee 'emergency'

European countries are not doing enough to address the crisis in the Mediterranean, rescue NGO Sea-Eye has said.

Two women in brightly colored safety vests, one holding a photo and the other a painting, both depicting migrants in boats at sea

Two women in brightly colored safety vests, one holding a photo and the other a painting, both depicting migrants in boats at sea

Asylum-seekers: Is EU-Tunisia like UK-Rwanda?

While Tunisia is a trusted ally for curbing migration to Europe, rights observers don't consider it a "safe" place.

People in front of a building

People in front of a building

How is Germany handling its migration partnerships?

Migration partnerships can't halt large movements of refugees, but they can help countries to better manage migration.

Doku KW 42 | Andalusia Reise

Doku KW 42 | Andalusia Reise

Mediterranean journey - Andalusia

As he travels the Mediterranean, Jaafar Abdul Karim visits Andalusia in Spain.

Dokumentarfilm | Modernes Mittelmeer - Malta

Dokumentarfilm | Modernes Mittelmeer - Malta

Mediterranean journey - Malta

Jaafar Abdul Karim travels through one of the smallest countries in Europe: Malta.

Smoke plumes billow from a fire at a lumber warehouse in southern Khartoum amidst ongoing fighting on June 7, 2023

Smoke plumes billow from a fire at a lumber warehouse in southern Khartoum amidst ongoing fighting on June 7, 2023

A humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in Sudan

Fighting has driven 6 million people from their homes in Sudan. In Darfur, the violence is reportedly escalating.

deutsche Rettungsschiff Humanity 1 im Mittelmeer

deutsche Rettungsschiff Humanity 1 im Mittelmeer

Mediterranean mission - Civil sea rescue of refugees

The German rescue ship 'Humanity 1' saves refugees on the Mediterranean.

A ship with migrants near the southern island of Crete, Greece

A ship with migrants near the southern island of Crete, Greece

The main routes migrants take to reach Europe

Migrants and refugees from Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia use these four main routes to reach the EU by sea.

Photo showing migrants onboard a trawler

Photo showing migrants onboard a trawler

Greece migrant boat disaster: Was the coast guard to blame?

Hundreds died when an overcrowded trawler capsized in June. Did the actions of the Greek coast guard cause the tragedy?

Europa | Seenotrettung im Mittelmeer

Europa | Seenotrettung im Mittelmeer

Who is responsible for saving shipwrecked migrants at sea?

There are laws that regulate the responsibilities for international sea rescue. What are they and what are the limits?

Tunesien Flüchtlingsboot auf dem Meer

Tunesien Flüchtlingsboot auf dem Meer

Sub-Saharan Africans no longer welcome in Tunisia

The Tunisian coastal city Sfax is a gateway to Europe for many African migrants looking to cross the Mediterranean.

Men huddled on beds in a warehouse

Men huddled on beds in a warehouse

Greece boat tragedy exposes Pakistan's migration problem

DW spoke with victims' families about why so many Pakistanis are risking their lives for an uncertain future in Europe.

Two men wearing masks transfer a corpse in a body bag from a ship to a truck

Two men wearing masks transfer a corpse in a body bag from a ship to a truck

Greece: Not an unexpected tragedy

Hundreds of refugees drowned off the coast of Greece this week. Some say the authorities are to blame.

View of harbor on Lampedusa

View of harbor on Lampedusa

German rescue ship defies Italy's disembarkation rules

A ship that saved migrants in the Mediterranean has taken them to another port than that assigned by Italian officials.

An August 2022 picture showing migrants with life jackets provided by volunteers of the Ocean Viking rescue ship sitting on a wooden boat in the Mediterranean Sea

An August 2022 picture showing migrants with life jackets provided by volunteers of the Ocean Viking rescue ship sitting on a wooden boat in the Mediterranean Sea

UN reports rise in Mediterranean migrant crossing deaths

More people are trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea to seek a better life, but many do not make it.

A view of the "Sea Eye 4" rescue ship

A view of the "Sea Eye 4" rescue ship

New hurdles for rescuers at sea in the Mediterranean

Italy's far-right government is impeding the work of civil organizations — but they're not giving up.

Migration im zentralen Mittelmeer - Ein Holzboot mit etwa 30 Menschen

Migration im zentralen Mittelmeer - Ein Holzboot mit etwa 30 Menschen

Fact check: Myths human traffickers tell refugees and migrants

Human traffickers say the Mediterranean route is safe and being pregnant or a minor guarantees asylum in the EU.

Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have fled to Lebanon over the past decades, but the country's severe economic crisis is now forcing many of them to try to leave.

Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have fled to Lebanon over the past decades, but the country's severe economic crisis is now forcing many of them to try to leave.

Booking the perilous passage to Europe

Mohamad Chreyeh reports on one man's desperate struggle to reach Europe despite the danger.

Sea-Watch crew member helps a migrant boarding a dinghy in the Mediterranean Sea

Sea-Watch crew member helps a migrant boarding a dinghy in the Mediterranean Sea

Italy: Over 1,000 migrants saved in the Mediterranean

Ships in the Mediterranean Sea rescued migrants trying to reach Europe, with Lampedusa facing a surge in new arrivals.

Flüchtlinge aus Seenot gerettet

Flüchtlinge aus Seenot gerettet

New asylum proposal puts EU on verge of reform

Migration and asylum policy is one of the EU's most controversial topics. Has the bloc just reached a breakthrough?

Migrants wearing lifejackets and rescuers wearing helmets on the Sea-Watch 3

Migrants wearing lifejackets and rescuers wearing helmets on the Sea-Watch 3

Over 400 migrants rescued over Christmas weekend

The Greek and Tunisian coast guards have also reported successful rescue missions.

DW Podcast | Inside Europe | provisorisch f ROAD

DW Podcast | Inside Europe | provisorisch f ROAD

Inside Europe 25.11.2021

Corona snapshots from a continent in denial, a tragedy foretold in the English channel, aid workers accused of people smuggling in Greece and a German artist takes on a notorious death in custody. Also: Slovakian filmakers force a historical reckoning, the Mediterranean celebrates itself, the Georgian wine industry's on a high and there's a new sport in town.

In this frame taken from video, a fishing boat with migrants is docked at the port of the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, southern Italy, late Monday, Sept. 27, 2021.

In this frame taken from video, a fishing boat with migrants is docked at the port of the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, southern Italy, late Monday, Sept. 27, 2021.

Italy: Record number of migrants arrive on Lampedusa

Numbers of migrant arrivals in Lampedusa are way up, including more than 500 on one boat late Monday.

On board the "Ocean Viking"

On board the "Ocean Viking"

More than 500 migrants rescued in the Mediterranean

The aid agency SOS Mediterranee says it has saved a total of 572 people in the Mediterranean Sea in recent days.

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Sea crossings on the rise again

Lampedusa has long been a magnet for people hoping to apply for asylum in Europe.

Woman holding up a life vest, approahced by a ruber boat with many people on board

Woman holding up a life vest, approahced by a ruber boat with many people on board

Is sea rescue a pull factor for refugees?

Researchers have investigated claims that sea rescue is a pull factor in asylum-related migration.

Pressebilder Sea-Eye 4

Pressebilder Sea-Eye 4

400 migrants finally disembark Sea-Eye 4

After days on board the Sea-Eye 4, hundreds of migrants were finally able to set foot on dry land at Pozzallo, Italy.

Migrants on a Spanish boat heading towards the Italian coast

Migrants on a Spanish boat heading towards the Italian coast

EU seeks migration deals with Libya and Tunisia

A top EU commissioner is visiting Tunisia in the hope of striking a deal to reduce migrant sea-crossings.

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Freighter becomes rescue ship

The German civil sea organization "Sea-Eye" is converting an old freighter into a rescue ship.

Seenotrettungsschiff Sea-Eye 4

Seenotrettungsschiff Sea-Eye 4

Germany's Sea-Eye 4 sets out for Mediterranean

Volunteers in Germany have been working for months to repurpose a former freighter for Mediterranean rescue missions.

Police check a migrant disembarked from Frontex ship "Protector" at the port of Pozzallo, Sicily

Police check a migrant disembarked from Frontex ship "Protector" at the port of Pozzallo, Sicily

UN concern over refugee treatment at EU borders

The UN refugee agency has warned that the idea of asylum is under attack, with refugee pushbacks increasingly common.

Migrants look at the coast of Italy on board an Open Arms vessel after being rescued in the Mediterranean Sea

Migrants look at the coast of Italy on board an Open Arms vessel after being rescued in the Mediterranean Sea

Open Arms ship rescues 265 migrants

The sea rescue organization saved hundreds of migrants hailing from Eritrea and Libya from the Mediterranean.

Refugees in a small boat

Refugees in a small boat

More migrants try to cross the Mediterranean from Lebanon

An increasing number of people try to flee economic hardship in Lebanon by setting out by boat for Cyprus or Greece.

Sea-Watch 4 in Palermo

Sea-Watch 4 in Palermo

Italy impounds German migrant rescue ship

Italian authorities have confined the migrant rescue vessel Sea-Watch 4 to port in the city of Palermo.

Refugees on the Sea Watch 4 look at the Maersk Etienne

Refugees on the Sea Watch 4 look at the Maersk Etienne

Desperate migrants jump from stranded ship

Three people have jumped into the Mediterranean Sea near Malta from a stranded tanker that rescued them a month ago.

Lama Suleiman

Lama Suleiman

Why Lama Suleiman feels more German than Syrian

Eight-year-old Lama fled to Germany from Syria in 2015, and has made the country a home away from home.

Men sitting in overcrowded wooden boat off Libya

Men sitting in overcrowded wooden boat off Libya

UN urges rethink after 45 migrants drown off Libya

The UN says nations must review their approach to migration across the Mediterranean after a major shipwreck off Libya.

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World Stories - The Week in Reports

COVID-19 divides US society, Refugees are attacked on the Aegean Sea, 93-year-old German survives COVID-19.

Inner tubes float on water

Inner tubes float on water

Coronavirus crisis hampers migrant sea rescues

NGOs say Italy and Malta are using the coronavirus pandemic as a pretext for closing ports to migrant rescue vessels.

Rescuers help migrants on a raft at sea

Rescuers help migrants on a raft at sea

EU agrees to mission Irini in Mediterranean

Operation Sophia was launched in 2015 to combat human smuggling and arms trafficking before being discontinued.

Libyen Mittelmeer MSF-SOS Mediterranee Rettungsschiff Ocean Viking Migranten mit Rettungswesten

Libyen Mittelmeer MSF-SOS Mediterranee Rettungsschiff Ocean Viking Migranten mit Rettungswesten

Ocean Viking: Lifesavers at Sea

The Ocean Viking rescues 276 migrants from life-threating situations in the Mediterranean Sea.

Bilder einer Rettung durch das Team der Ocean Viking

Bilder einer Rettung durch das Team der Ocean Viking

On a rescue mission with the Ocean Viking

The Ocean Viking rescued hundreds of refugees from the Mediterranean.

DW correspondent Miodrag Soric on board the Ocean Viking

DW correspondent Miodrag Soric on board the Ocean Viking

From sea rescue to quarantine: A visual diary from the Ocean Viking

From rescue missions to quarantine on a ship in Italy: DW's Miodrag Soric chronicles life on board the Ocean Viking.

Sebastian Kurz and Angela Merkel

Sebastian Kurz and Angela Merkel

Germany and Austria disagree over refugee rescue mission

Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz argued that Operation Sophia promoted human trafficking.

Migrants from Syria walk into a refugee camp in Kokkinotrimithia village outside the capital Nicosia, Cyprus

Migrants from Syria walk into a refugee camp in Kokkinotrimithia village outside the capital Nicosia, Cyprus

EU money tied to migration restrictions: Oxfam

The charity has accused Brussels of using aid money as a policy tool to curb migration to the continent.

Refugees in the Mediterranean

Refugees in the Mediterranean

German cities petition to take in more refugees

Municipalities have demanded permission to take action as the situation on the Mediterranean Sea intensifies.

Griechenland | Flüchtlinge auf Gummiboot vor Kos

Griechenland | Flüchtlinge auf Gummiboot vor Kos

11 migrants drown off Turkish coast

Eight of those found dead in the water were children.

The charity boat Alan Kurdi

The charity boat Alan Kurdi

German ship rescues migrants in the Mediterranean

The vessel Alan Kurdi reached a rubber boat with 32 migrants, who said they were Libyan citizens.

A rubber dinghy carrying migrants rescued by German NGO Sea-Eye ship "Alan Kurdi" pictured at sea on October 26, 2019

A rubber dinghy carrying migrants rescued by German NGO Sea-Eye ship "Alan Kurdi" pictured at sea on October 26, 2019

Italy allows German migrant rescue boat to dock

The nearly week-long standoff ended after Germany and other countries agreed to take in the 88 migrants on board.