Italian authorities say at least 29 African migrants have died of hypothermia while crossing the Mediterranean in freezing weather and rough seas. The Italian coast guard says it found seven people dead when it answered a distress call from the migrants’ boat off Libya late Sunday. It says 22 others died on a vessel that […]
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said his government receives information about U.S.-led airstrikes against Islamic State militants in Syria, but he stressed there is no direct cooperation. Assad told the BBC in Damascus that there are exchanges of messages through third parties, such as Iraq, but the exchanges do not include tactical information. He said Syria […]
BEIRUT—Visa restrictions have been imposed on Syrians entering Lebanon, as further efforts are made to limit the flow of refugees into the country. The new measures mean Syrians now have to obtain a visa before crossing into Lebanon, which is already struggling to cope with more than a million refugees. The move was announced by […]
2,500 persons seeking asylum, most from North Africa, were rescued in the Mediterranean Sea since Thursday, including 157 children according to the Italian government. The unusually large amount of rescues in the last 24-hours brings the total of asylum seekers to over 62,000 for the first five months of 2014, this total is more than the […]