Irish Navy to be deployed in Mediterranean

Officers from the Irish Navy are set to be deployed in the Mediterranean on search and rescue missions.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny made the announcement as EU leaders meet in Brussels to discuss the humanitarian crisis in North Africa.

Protest at Dail in solidarity with Migrants #migrantlivesmatter pic.twitter.com/ENs4r22Tag

— Richard Boyd Barrett (@RBoydBarrett) April 23, 2015

He says every EU country has to play its part to tackle the crisis which has seen hundreds of thousands of people seek refuge in Europe.

"We are prepared to allocate a fully crewed and equipped naval vessel once the legal clarifications become clear. This is a mounting humanitarian and political crisis," said the Taoiseach.

'R.I.P. brothers and sisters. You matter.' Mourning the migrants who died: http://t.co/MrqMHDU8it pic.twitter.com/1HqkW1wrZ4

— Mashable (@mashable) April 22, 2015