Europe migrant crisis News

Three migrants from sub-Saharan Africa were killed when their boat capsized in the Mediterranean but the Spanish navy managed to rescue another 30 people in the group, a coast guard spokeswoman said on Wednesday.

Dozens of migrants held in a detention centre in Madrid have rioted, climbing on the building`s roof and breaking furniture, a spokesperson for the city`s mayor said.

Europe has been on edge for months after a string of deadly attacks claimed by the Islamic State jihadist group.

French authorities on Monday evacuated 1,850 migrants from a tent camp which had sprung up in a Paris park, where conditions had nosedived after one of the wettest Mays on record.

EU leaders have warned that the 26-country Schengen area is under threat from the migration crisis, with several countries reintroducing border controls in response to the huge influx of migrants arriving in Europe as they flee conflict in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere.

Italy insisted Friday it was not facing an "invasion" after a spike in migrant boat crossings from Libya exacerbated fears the country is on the verge of becoming the main entry point for people trying to reach Europe.

Italy`s coastguard said Tuesday it had rescued some 4,000 migrants in the past two days, adding to fears of a fresh push to reach Europe via that route as the number of migrants landing in Greece sharply recedes.

Austria will introduce tougher border controls at the Brenner Pass crossing with Italy from June 1 at the latest as part of a tough response to Europe`s migration crisis, Defence Minister Hans Peter Doskozil said on Tuesday.

Some 4,000 migrants have been rescued from boats in the Strait of Sicily between Tunisia and Italy in the past two days, Italy`s coastguard said.

The Italian coastguard Monday rescued 1,850 migrants in eight operations in the Strait of Sicily, as a wave of boats departing from the Libyan coast intensifies.

Austria`s new Interior Minister Wolfgang Sobotka said on Sunday he would stick to the hardline stance on migrants pushed by his predecessor, Johanna Mikl-Leitner.

Four migrant women and a child drowned Saturday off the Greek island of Samos, the first deaths in the Aegean Sea since a controversial EU-Turkey deal to stem the flow of refugees took effect three weeks ago.

European Union leaders will try to convince Turkey`s prime minister to help end Europe`s migration crisis in return for financial and political concessions but they remain unsure if Friday`s Brussels summit can clinch a deal.

Merkel`s Christian Democratic Union was at the receiving end of voters` anger, suffering defeats in two out of three states in regional elections.

Turkish coastguards managed to save nine of the migrants on board while two are still missing.

EU leaders sit down with Turkey`s premier on Monday seeing a glimmer of hope for an end to the refugee crisis that has divided Europe but troubled by having to seek favours from a government that scorns their ideas of human rights.

The declaration drafted by EU ambassadors Sunday will be announced at a summit in Brussels on Monday.

Previous attempts to distribute refugees between EU member states have stalled due to disagreements.

Greece lies at the heart of Europe's greatest migration crisis in six decades after a series of border restrictions on the migrant trail from Austria to Macedonia caused a bottleneck on its soil.

European Union president Donald Tusk will visit Turkey this week for fresh talks on migration ahead of a crucial Brussels summit on the crisis, his office said Tuesday.