Europe Reels From More Migrant Deaths on Land and Sea - nytimes

VIENNA — Europe reeled from fresh shocks in its escalating migration crisis Friday, with reports of 150 drownings in the Mediterranean and news that far more migrant corpses had been found crammed in an abandoned refrigeration truck in Austria than first thought. Damage to the vehicle’s side raised the possibility that victims had struggled to escape.

The authorities in Austria and Hungary said at least four people had been arrested in connection with the truck as they disclosed that the remains of 71 people had been found inside, including four children, and that at least some had come from Syria. On Thursday officials had estimated as many as 50 people had been packed in the vehicle, before they discovered additional bodies.

The scope of the migrant crisis, the biggest wave to hit Europe since World War II, was further amplified Friday by a report from the United Nations refugee agency estimating a 40 percent jump this year in the number of people fleeing to the Continent by boat compared with all of 2014. Most are escaping war and strife in the Middle East and Africa.

The deadly perils of crossing the Mediterranean, already well known, were reinforced by news from Libyan and international relief officials that 150 people had drowned off western Libya after their boats sank on Thursday. - Read More at NYT

Europe Reels From More Migrant Deaths on Land and Sea

Migrant or Refugee? There Is a Difference, With Legal Implications