VATICAN CITY-- Pope Francis has expressed his ‘sympathies and sorrow’ for the victims of the Calabrian shipwreck, and called for a stop to human trafficking leading to 'journeys of death' during his last Angelus. 

 "I renew my appeal to prevent such tragedies from happening again. May traffickers of human beings be stopped, and may journeys of hope never turn into journeys of death again. The clear waters of the Mediterranean are no longer bloodied by such dramatic incidents. May the Lord give us the strength to understand and to cry." The pontiff said in his speech addressing the St Peter’s crowds. 

 The shipwreck caused the deaths of at least 70 people and counting, with as little as 80 survivors which still leaves around 50 people unaccounted for as the boat was estimated to have carried at least 200 migrants. 

 Three human traffickers, who are suspected of being involved in the shipwreck have already been arrested this week. Prosecutors have also commenced inspecting how emergency services responded to the incident after they were accused of intentionally being neglectful and passive during and after the shipwreck.

 Pope Francis also addressed the victims in his speech saying “I pray for the many victims of the shipwreck, for their families, and for those who survived.” 

 Giorgia Meloni, Italy’s Prime Minister, who was also heavily critiqued for her government’s response to the tragedy has responded to the words of the pope. 

 She wrote on Facebook saying she is grateful for his speech and that her government is “continuing to deploy all necessary forces to combat human traffickers and stop deaths at sea.”

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