Italian researchers are warning that rising sea levels in the Mediterranean threaten new areas of the Italian coastline.

In the past few days several European leaders - namely, French President Emmanuel Macron and Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat - have criticised rescue vessels and NGO's for disobeying authorities, and exacerbating the refugee crisis.Listen to an interview with MSF Humanitarian Affairs Advisor

Hundreds of migrants have been rescued by the Spanish Maritime Rescue Service. The migrants were taken to a makeshift migrant reception centre in Tarifa.

The rescue operations come amid growing arguments over who should take the migrants

A new report by the European Asylum Support Office reveals that applications for asylum in the EU have almost halved. This is the second year in a row that the number of asylum seekers in the EU have fallen, but the inflow remains higher than the pre-crisis levels of 2014.

In this edition of State of the Union: As Donald Trump makes friends with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, the Aquarius rescue ship drama in the

As a humanitarian vessel turned away by Italy and Malta heads to Spain, questions hang over the future of migrant rescue missions in the Mediterranean.

The voyage has been wrought with drama and difficulty: The Mediterranean crossing between North Africa and Europe is dangerous – more than 600 people have died so far this year while attempting to cross it.

Migrants face misery of high seas and winds in cramped conditions before landfall.

Joy breaks out on the humanitarian vessel at Spain's offer of refuge after days at sea.

"Italy can't do the job alone" says the humanitarian organisation SOS Méditerranée

The events in the Mediterranean have been closely watched by Brussels

Euronews correspondent Anelise Borges reports from on board the Aquarius whose 629 migrants it rescued from the Mediterranean remain stranded at sea.

Rome reportedly asks Malta to take over 600 refugees onboard humanitarian vessel.