"Migrant vessel capsizes in Mediterranean" by Sam Schaffer

According to Maltese coast guard authorities, a migrant vessel in the Mediterranean capsized this Saturday, losing 650 out of the 700 who were originally on board. Halfway into its voyage to Europe, the vessel found itself in distress and sent out an SOS signal late into the night. As rescuers approached hours later, the passengers on board, hoping to be rescued, moved to one side of the boat- causing the large, multistory boat to capsize, which sent hundreds into the frigid waters of the Mediterranean below. The Italian coast guard, working with Maltese authorities, managed to rescue around 50 of the original 700.

Although the shipwreck itself was an accident, many have blamed the deaths of the migrants on human trafficking operations, which often involve the same type of large, rickety vessels, moving through dangerous and unpredictable waters. The Maltese Prime Minister, Joseph Muscat, said that the incident was caused by human trafficking, and the illicit and sketchy circumstances under which it often takes place: "Gangs of criminals are putting people on a boat, sometimes even at gunpoint- they're putting them on the road to death, really, and nothing else." Muscat characterized the incident as "genocide-nothing less than genocide, really," when asked by reporters from CNN.