Pope Francis expressed his sorrow for the tragedy of migrants that occurred on the coast of Italy, which left at least 69 dead. The Holy Father was speaking after the Angelus prayer on this Sunday in the Vatican.
“I express my sorrow for the tragedy that occurred in the waters of Cutro in Crotone. I pray for the many victims of the shipwreck, for their families and for those who have survived,” the Holy Father said before the 25,000 faithful present in Saint Peter’s Square.
“I express my appreciation and my gratitude to the local population and the institutions for their solidarity and welcome towards these brothers and sisters of ours and I renew my call to all so that these tragedies are not repeated,” said Pope Francis.
“Stop human traffickers, they can’t continue to take the lives of so many innocent people!” I exclaimed.
“May the trips of hope never turn into trips of death again! May the clear waters of the Mediterranean no longer be stained with blood by such dramatic incidents! May the Lord give us the strength to understand and cry”, stressed the Holy Father.
The Italian authorities located the body of a child on Saturday, March 4, bringing the number of deaths to 69, 15 of whom were minors, in the sinking of a migrant barge that left Turkey.
The tragedy occurred on Sunday, 26 February, off the coast of Crotone, in the Calabria region of southern Italy.
So far, 56 of the 69 bodies found have been identified, mostly migrants from Afghanistan, Iran and Syria. Likewise, 81 people were rescued and the authorities are still looking for survivors.