The United Nations has estimated up to 850 migrants perished when their boat capsized en route to Europe Sunday, confirming its place as the worst migrant disaster in the Mediterranean Sea. Survivors have put the death toll between 400 and 950 people, with reports hundreds were locked in a hold by smugglers. Italian authorities have arrested the captain and another crew member. On Monday, at least three people died when another boat ran aground off the Greek island of Rhodes, while Italian authorities said they rescued over 600. As the European Union vowed to launch military efforts against smugglers, protesters gathered in Paris, France, to demand urgent action. Amnesty International director Stephan Oberreit called for a robust rescue program, similar to Italy’s discontinued Mare Nostrum.

Stephan Oberreit: “We are saying that they need to take action now. They can’t just look the other way with hundreds of people dying in the Mediterranean. It’s non-assistance to people in danger. They need to take action and bring about an operation of rescue, like Mare Nostrum was an operation of rescue.”