Photo: Reuters

An estimated 400 migrants drowned in the Mediterranean when their boat capsized, 24 hours after leaving Libya.  Approximately 145 people were rescued.  Italian authorities say that around 8,500 migrants had been rescued at sea between Friday and Monday alone.  Nearly 3,500 migrants died attempting to cross the sea in 2014, according to the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.

An unprecedented number of refugees are attempting to cross the Mediterranean in overcrowded and often decrepit boats, driven by instability and warfare in Libya, Eritrea and Syria. The EU border agency Frontex estimates that more than 500,000 people are now waiting to set out from Libya for Europe, so the body count is only likely to rise.  Thanks to Phil Leon for contributing to this post.