Britain, France join Germany to pledge help with refugee wave

Britain and France on Monday joined Germany in pledging to accept tens of thousands of refugees as Europe’s record influx of people fleeing war and misery sparked warnings that one Greek migrant chokepoint was “on the verge of explosion.” As EU leaders stepped up efforts to tackle the historic crisis, France said it would take 24,000 more asylum-seekers under a European plan to relocate 120,000 refugees from hard-hit frontline countries. And British Prime Minister David Cameron said his country would take in 20,000 Syrian refugees from camps near the war-torn country’s borders over the next five years, calling the United Kingdom “a country of extraordinary compassion.”

We want the change to be positive, and we believe we can accomplish that.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel

Meanwhile, the poor and desperate kept coming, both on the land corridor through Turkey and the Balkans and on overcrowded boats in the Mediterranean on journeys that have left 2,800 dead or missing this year. Underscoring the danger brought home by last week’s shocking image of 3-year-old Aylan Kurdi lying drowned in the surf, a Greek passenger ferry on Monday sent its lifeboats to rescue 61 migrants whose boat was at risk of sinking off Lesbos. The Libyan coast guard said it had rescued over 120 migrants aboard a rubber boat en route to Europe. Elsewhere migrants rescued by Italian authorities on Sunday said five of their group were still missing.

Politics refugee crisis