Pope Francis yesterday appealed to the international community to take swift and decisive action to avoid further tragedies in the Mediterranean.

Speaking to tens of thousands of people gathered in the Vatican’s St Peter’s Square, in Rome for his Sunday noon address, the Pontiff said the dead were “people like us”.

“I make a heartfelt appeal to the international community to react decisively and quickly to see to it that such tragedies are not repeated,” he said before asking the crowd to pray for those that had perished.

React decisively and quickly to see to it that such tragedies are not repeated

While celebrating Mass at Floriana parish church on the occasion of the feast of St Publius, Archbishop Charles Scicluna called for more respect and tolerance towards migrants.

He said the feast day should remind the faithful of the plight of “our brothers shipwrecked in the Mediterranean today”.

“We cannot celebrate this feast here today and then turn round and use words of hate towards migrants on social media,” he said.

“Publius took [Saint] Paul into his home not knowing who he was. He didn’t ‘send him back’ and he received a great blessing for himself and his country as a result,” Mgr Scicluna said.