Africa

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Aid Workers Hear Migrants' Accounts Of Shipwrecks

12:27pm April 24, 2015

The charity Save the Children has been hearing from migrants who have survived the dangerous journey to Europe from across the Mediterranean. Text messages come in every day about boats in distress.

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In this photo made available Thursday, April 23, 2015, migrants crowd and inflatable dinghy as the Italian Coast Guard approaches them, off the Libyan coast, on Wednesday.

World News

EU Leaders Pledge More Ships To Patrol Mediterranean For Migrants

10:04am April 24, 2015

by Scott Neuman

Days after 900 were feared drowned in a single accident, the European Union is struggling to forge a new policy to combat the flow of people setting off mostly from Libya in overcrowded boats.

World News

European Leaders Hold Summit To Address Migrant Crisis

7:13pm April 23, 2015

by Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson

European leaders are gathering in Brussels to address the crisis. A tentative plan calls for more money for border security in the Mediterranean and possible military action against traffickers.

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Mediterranean Migrants Stay In 'Reception Centers' While Awaiting Asylum

7:03pm April 23, 2015

NPR's Robert Siegel interviews Carlotta Sami, spokesperson at UNHCR for Southern Europe, about the survivors of what is being called the biggest migrant boat disaster to date in the Mediterranean.

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Archbishop Desmond Tutu and his daughter Mpho bust some moves at the 2015 Skoll World Forum.

World News

Feeling Blue? Share A Laugh With Archbishop Desmond Tutu

10:39am April 23, 2015

by Marc Silver

When he chuckled at a conference last week, the world was a happier place. And when he spoke, he reminded us all how little moments can have a big impact.

Chantel, 3, and Antoni, 7 months, migrated to Spain from their native Cameroon, with their mother Tatiana Kanga, 25. Tatiana was nine months pregnant with Antoni when they crossed the Mediterranean Sea together in an inflatable boat.

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9 Months Pregnant, An African Woman Risks It All And Heads To Europe

10:23am April 23, 2015

by Lauren Frayer

Tatiana Kanga paid a Moroccan smuggler $1,290 so she and her toddler daughter could ride in a rubber boat, 14 harrowing hours from Africa to Europe.

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U.N. Representative Blames Syria's Civil War For Massive Migration Crisis

7:41am April 23, 2015

The U.N. says Europe and the West need to change immigration policies to prevent more disaster. Renee Montagne talks to Francois Crepeau, the U.N. special rapporteur on the human rights of migrants.

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World News

Migrants New To Spain Say Human Traffickers Are The Scariest Part

7:41am April 23, 2015

by Lauren Frayer

Migrants who have made the perilous trip across the Mediterranean say their journeys to Europe were made possible by a network of professional traffickers.

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The Kenyan government closed this money-transfer service to prevent money from reaching the terrorist group al-Shahab in Somalia.

Why Somali Grandmas And Aid Workers Might Be Short On Cash

3:52pm April 22, 2015

by Don Boroughs

Money transfer agencies are the lifeblood of Somalia. But Kenya has shut down 13 East African branches to keep money out of the hands of terrorists blamed for a deadly attack early this month.

<strong><a href="http://apps.npr.org/syria/">READ: With Syria Engulfed In Civil War, Here Are Four Stories Of Families Trying To Stay Together</a></strong><br />More than 200,000 refugees have settled in Europe since the start of the Syrian conflict.

World News

Smuggler To Desperate Migrants: 'Now I Am Sending You To Your Death'

8:03pm April 21, 2015

by Joanna Kakissis

More migrants are leaving from chaotic Libya in a bid to reach Europe. The overcrowded boats are at risk of sinking, and some do. A Syrian man tells of the treacherous journey with his young son.