More than 100 migrants died off the coast of Lampedusa in the latest tragic accident. © STR/AFP/Getty Images

15/08/2013 – The Treaties of the European Union state that the EU is founded on the value of respect for human rights. As outlined in the EU Strategic Framework and Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy – adopted by the Council of the EU in June 2012 – this means both ensuring that the Union’s relations with other countries are founded on respect for human rights, and securing rights for everyone within the Union itself.

15/07/2013 –

12/07/2013 – Amnesty International is concerned that the prime minister of Malta made a number of statements between 4 and 9 July 2013 indicating that Malta could resort to push-backs of boats of foreign nationals and collective expulsions of individuals already within Maltese jurisdiction. On 9 July 2013 the government of Malta stated that it was “considering all options” to deal with the large number of foreign nationals who had recently arrived on the island.