In Pictures

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In pictures: Migrants on the move

People fleeing instability and violence in nations arfound the world often have to traverse deadly seas.

Migrants gather aboard the amphibious ship San Marco after being rescued from a boat in distress some 25 miles off the island of Lampedusa, Italy, on October 25, 2013. More than 800 migrants were intercepted trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea during just one mass crossing of four boats.
Published On 27 Oct 2013

Migrants and refugees trying to reach Western Europe must travel by ship, where they face several dangers. Colloquially known as “boat people”, they have to endure unsafe waters, weak vessels that often capsize, and unsympathetic police. In 2013, nearly 35,000 people have so far arrived in southern Italy and Malta. Those on board are mainly from Libya, Somalia, Eritrea, Egypt, Pakistan, Mali, Gambia, Aghanistan, and Syria.

The UN says there are now more refugees than at any time since 1994. And they’re not all heading for Europe. Thousands of asylum-seekers, mainly from Afghanistan and the Middle East, head to Indonesia each year to make the dangerous voyage across the Indian ocean to Australia.

In addition, many Haitians and Cubans trek through the Caribbean to reach Miami and the rest of the United States.

This gallery of images, all taken within the past couple of weeks, offers a glimpse into the perilous journeys migrants undertake in search of a better life.

For more on migrants’ routes to Europe, check out Al Jazeera’s interactive infographic: The price of passage

 

On October 25, A patrol boat intercepted 95 people from Eritrea in the waters south-east of Lampedusa. In another incident on the same day, 80 migrants were rescued by a cargo vessel.
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Syrian and Sub-Saharan African migrants attend a commemorative service, organised by the Jesuit Refugee Services, for immigrants who lost their lives at sea earlier this month, at Valletta(***)s Grand Harbour in Malta, October 25, 2013.
Syrian refugee Mohammed, 12, poses for a picture at the Hal Far open centre for migrants in Hal Far, outside Valletta, October 22, 2013. The boy and his family all survived when their boat capsized 60 miles south of Lampedusa earlier this month.
Migrants lay on matresses after being detained at a temporary prison on October 19, 2013, in an eastern district of Tripoli, Libya, after they were captured in the coastal city of Surman during an attempt to reach Europe on fishing boats.
US Coast Guard personnel investigate a vessel with a missing center console that capsized near Miami while carrying 15 people from Haiti on October 16, 2013.
Haitians who believe their relatives were among 15 people aboard a boat that capsized off Miami last week are calling on US officials to release more information about the accident(***)s survivors.
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Rescued migrants sit in a corridor while waiting to undergo preliminary medical tests at Mater Dei Hospital in Tal-Qroqq, outside Valletta, October 12, 2013.