Pope Francis took part in a solemn ceremony on the Greek island of Lesbos on Wednesday, saying prayers for migrants who have died trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea. After a day of meetings with Greek officials, the pope prayed at the site where most of the more than 4,000 migrants who have died on the Mediterranean so far this year set out on their perilous journeys.
Standing under a statue of St. John Paul II, Francis told the crowd, including hundreds of migrants, that Europe was part of the Mediterranean and that it was necessary to work together in the hope of helping migrants survive. He didn’t make specific reference to recent comments by French President Emmanuel Macron, who had suggested that migrants should go back to their countries of origin, but he did pray that “the heart of the continent opens to those who in times of need ask it to be more fraternal.”
There has been a spike in arrivals on the Greek islands in recent months, which has intensified political debates in the United States about immigration reform. The number of migrants arriving on the Greek islands has doubled in the last two months, said the UNHCR, a UN refugee agency. And many critics on both sides of the issue say France’s rejection of a deal with the United States to deport some of the 90,000 illegal immigrants who have overstayed their visas has encouraged migrants to embark on long, arduous journeys across the Mediterranean.
They say the only way to combat the numbers of migrants and refugees arriving on the islands is to reduce the number of foreign workers and control immigration through better border controls.
The pope’s visit to Lesbos was one of five he is taking part in before returning to Rome.