\n<\/p>\n
“Europe is capable of addressing the crisis in this region in a comprehensive manner, integrating immediate relief efforts into a long-term strategic plan capable of receiving, protecting, supporting and integrating migrants” while “assisting developing countries so that no one is forced to emigrate”, he said.<\/p>\n
The island of Lampedusa – which sits 90 miles (145km) off Tunisia’s coast – is home to a migrant reception centre that is overcrowded with challenging living conditions.<\/p>\n
Those who make the journey often travel in poorly maintained and overcrowded vessels, making sea crossings more perilous for those aboard.<\/p>\n
More than 1,400 people have died or gone missing while attempting to cross the \u2060Mediterranean this year, including 28 children, according to the UN’s International Organization for Migration.<\/p>\n
New migrants, rescue officials, members of aid groups and the Italian Coast Guard were among those to gather to see the Pope.<\/p>\n
The Pope “continues to accompany you, support you and encourage you”, he told the gathering.<\/p>\n
“The pope’s visit speaks to every one of us,” Kandeh Abdourahman, a migrant who arrived in Lampedusa in 2015, told news agency Reuters.<\/p>\n
It was “a reminder that our stories are seen, that welcome is not just a word but an act of humanity”, said Abdourahman, now a cultural mediator with the International Rescue Committee.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n