2 hours ago Pope Leo XIV has called connected European leaders to emergence to the "momentous challenge" of handling migration arsenic helium visited the Italian land of Lampedusa.
The pontiff urged Europe to assistance caller arrivals integrate amended and amended conditions successful their location countries, during a wide connected the island, which receives tens of thousands of migrants a year.
"Those who person mislaid their lives successful this oversea are victims some of decisions that were made and of decisions that were not made," the Pope said.
Since becoming the caput of the Catholic Church successful May 2025, the American Pope has repeatedly called for greater enactment for migrants and criticised the US government's anti-immigration policies.
He began the travel with a sojourn to a cemetery connected Lampedusa and prayed astatine the graves of migrants who had died portion making the unsafe travel from Africa to Europe crossed the Mediterranean Sea.
The Pope besides stood astatine the "Door of Europe" memorial for those who had perished attempting the crossing and spoke to a migrant family.
"From this far-flung country of Europe connected the Mediterranean Sea, 1 tin much intelligibly comprehend the momentous situation that the improvement of migration poses to European societies," helium told Catholics connected the island.
"Europe is susceptible of addressing the situation successful this portion successful a broad manner, integrating contiguous alleviation efforts into a semipermanent strategical program susceptible of receiving, protecting, supporting and integrating migrants" portion "assisting processing countries truthful that nary 1 is forced to emigrate", helium said.
The land of Lampedusa - which sits 90 miles (145km) disconnected Tunisia's seashore - is location to a migrant reception centre that is overcrowded with challenging surviving conditions.
Those who marque the travel often question successful poorly maintained and overcrowded vessels, making oversea crossings much perilous for those aboard.
More than 1,400 radical person died oregon gone missing portion attempting to transverse the Mediterranean this year, including 28 children, according to the UN's International Organization for Migration.
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