Paramedics carry a person rescued from a boat that capsized off Cyprus' northern coastline, as he is brought to a hospital in Silifke, near the city of Mersin, southern Turkey, late Wednesday, July 18, 2018. A boat carrying about 150 migrants capsized off the northern coast of Cyprus on Wednesday, with the search continuing and some 105 people rescued so far according to the Turkish coast guard. (Mustafa Ercan/DHA-Depo Photos via AP)
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VATICAN CITY (AP) - Pope Francis has lamented the latest migrant deaths in shipwrecks of smugglers' boats and entreated nations to act swiftly to prevent more tragedies.
Francis in his traditional Sunday appearance to faithful in St. Peter's Square expressed sorrow over recent deaths in the Mediterranean Sea and assured victims' loved ones of his prayers.
He called on "the international community to act decisively and quickly so similar tragedies aren't repeated" and said the "safety, respect of rights and the dignity of all must be guaranteed."
Far fewer migrants have arrived in Italy this year compared to the same period in 2017, but U.N. refugee officials say recent crossings have been deadlier.
With Italy's new populist government and Malta not allowing aid groups' boats to dock, rescued migrants lately have been stranded at sea for days.
People with hands painted in red protest in front of the Italian Interior Ministry headquarters in Rome, Wednesday, July 18, 2018. Dozens of protesters marched in front of the ministry to protest government's hard-line immigration policy. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
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People with hands painted in red protest in front of the Italian Interior Ministry headquarters in Rome, Wednesday, July 18, 2018. Dozens of protesters marched in front of the ministry to protest government's hard-line immigration policy. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
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Rescue workers from the Proactiva Open Arms Spanish NGO retrieve the bodies of an adult and a child amid the drifting remains of a destroyed migrant boat off the Libyan coast, on Tuesday July 17, 2018. A migrant rescue aid group accused Libya's coast guard of abandoning three people in the Mediterranean Sea, including an adult woman and a toddler who died, after intercepting some 160 Europe-bound migrants on Monday near the shores of the northern African country. (Proactiva Open Arms via AP)
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Claus-Peter Reisch, captain of the migrant rescue ship "Lifeline" gives interviews after arriving at the airport in Munich, southern Germany, Monday, July 16, 2018. (Matthias Balk/dpa via AP)
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A rescue worker from the Proactiva Open Arms Spanish NGO helps a migrant, rescued off the Libyan coast, on Tuesday July 17, 2018. Proactiva Open Arms said it found one woman alive Tuesday and another dead, along with the body of a toddler, amid the drifting remains of a destroyed migrant boat some 80 nautical miles from the Libyan coast. (Proactiva Open Arms via AP)
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