Premeditated legal charges, smears and accusations may have forced Médecins Sans Frontières and SOS MEDITERRANEE to cease their search and rescue operations, but they will not stop NGOs trying to save lives in the Mediterranean.

The Doctors Without Borders and SOS Méditerranée ship has said it has terminated its search and rescue operations due to pressure from European countries.

The 12 migrants were rescued in international waters off the coast of Libya by a small Spanish fishing boat.

A Spanish migrant rescue ship has been docked for over two months, waiting for authorities to grant it the last signature it needs to take to the Mediterranean Sea.

Rescue workers are searching for survivors after at least 17 migrants died trying to reach Spain from north Africa.

The collision resulted in a fuel spill that spread across 25 km in the Mediterranean Sea.

European governments must review their search and rescue capacities in the Mediterranean Sea according to the UN Refugee Agency in Geneva. "The fear is if there is no search and rescue in the Mediterranean, more lives will be lost,” says UNHCR spokesman Babar Baloch.

Experts said EU leaders need to act to prevent the collapse of the region's fish stocks.

A huge spiderweb is covering 300 metres of vegetation in Aetoliko, Greece

European leaders should not allow their vision of a humane asylum policy to be held hostage by fear.

German NGO Sea Watch described the lack of action as "a clear case of non-assistance".

A documentary producer speaks to Euronews about his experience accompanying the Italian Coast Guard, NGOs and Italian Red Cross for two months as they conducted rescue operations in the Mediterranean Sea.

The UN’s Migration Agency confirms that Spain is now the preferred destination for migrants and refugees crossing the Mediterranean – but overall arrivals into Europe are well below 2017 and 2016 figures.