Al Jazeera News :
Up to 50 refugees have been found dead in a truck in Austria, as German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Balkan leaders gathered in Vienna to decide on how to tackle together the biggest migration crisis to hit Europe since World War II.
The vehicle, which contained between 20 and 50 bodies, was found on a parking strip off the highway in Burgenland state, police spokesman Hans Peter Doskozil said at a Thursday press conference with Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner.
“This tragedy affects us all deeply,” Mikl-Leitner said. “Human traffickers are criminals. Anyone still thinking that they’re kind helpers cannot be helped.”
It was not immediately clear how the people in the truck had died, nor how long they had been there.
More than 28,300 people applied for refugee protection in Austria in the first half of the year, with many coming from Syria.
At the talks in Vienna, Merkel said everyone had been “shaken” by news of the bodies found.
“We are of course all shaken by the appalling news,” Merkel said.
“This reminds us that we must tackle quickly the issue of immigration and in a European spirit – that means in a spirit of solidarity – and to find solutions.”
The talks come amid growing criticism of the European Union’s failure to agree on a joint response to the unfolding crisis.
Countries taking part include Macedonia and Serbia, two major transit nations for the thousands of migrants and refugees trying to enter the EU by taking the so-called “western Balkans route”.
The foreign ministers of both countries called for a concerted EU action plan at the start of the summit.
Up to 50 refugees have been found dead in a truck in Austria, as German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Balkan leaders gathered in Vienna to decide on how to tackle together the biggest migration crisis to hit Europe since World War II.
The vehicle, which contained between 20 and 50 bodies, was found on a parking strip off the highway in Burgenland state, police spokesman Hans Peter Doskozil said at a Thursday press conference with Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner.
“This tragedy affects us all deeply,” Mikl-Leitner said. “Human traffickers are criminals. Anyone still thinking that they’re kind helpers cannot be helped.”
It was not immediately clear how the people in the truck had died, nor how long they had been there.
More than 28,300 people applied for refugee protection in Austria in the first half of the year, with many coming from Syria.
At the talks in Vienna, Merkel said everyone had been “shaken” by news of the bodies found.
“We are of course all shaken by the appalling news,” Merkel said.
“This reminds us that we must tackle quickly the issue of immigration and in a European spirit – that means in a spirit of solidarity – and to find solutions.”
The talks come amid growing criticism of the European Union’s failure to agree on a joint response to the unfolding crisis.
Countries taking part include Macedonia and Serbia, two major transit nations for the thousands of migrants and refugees trying to enter the EU by taking the so-called “western Balkans route”.
The foreign ministers of both countries called for a concerted EU action plan at the start of the summit.
