DHAKA: Italian PM Matteo Renzi has led calls for more European Union action on sea migration after the latest deadly capsize of a boat in the Mediterranean.

Demanding a summit on the issue, Renzi said trafficking was ‘a plague in our continent’ and bemoaned the lack of European solidarity.

The 20m boat was believed to be carrying up to 700 migrants, and only 28 survivors have been rescued.

EU foreign ministers are expected to address the issue at a meeting later.

The Italian coastguard has just confirmed that the boat carrying the 24 coffins of victims of the sinking will arrive in Malta.

Human smugglers are taking advantage of the political crisis in Libya to use it as a launching point for boats carrying migrants who are fleeing violence or economic hardship in Africa and the Middle East.

Up to 1,500 migrants are now feared to have drowned this year alone.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said the latest sinking could amount to the largest loss of life during a migrant crossing to Europe, reports the BBC.

BDST: 1636 HRS, APR 20, 2015
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