The Italian coast guard says it rescued a staggering 11,000 refugees trying to make the deadly crossing from Libya into Europe this week alone, amid the greatest refugee crisis since World War II. The coast guard says at least 50 people died in the crossing, including 20 people who reportedly suffocated in the hold of a boat. An aid worker has compared the conditions in the cargo holds of the overcrowded fishing boats used to transport refugees to those of slave ships. This is the deputy mayor of the Italian coastal town of Pozzallo.

Francesco Gugliotta: “From what I know, among the victims, there was also a very unlucky pregnant woman, who lost her life. I think the death of these people is to be blamed on the terrible conditions they are made to travel in.”