In photos: The ongoing Mediterranean migrant crisis

As Europe works to stem the flow of migrants and asylum seekers across the Mediterranean, thousands continue to drown while rescuers scramble to save people from unseaworthy vessels.

Migrant Crisis Source: Getty Images

Last year more than 5,000 migrants and asylum seekers drowned attempting to reach Europe from Turkey and North Africa.

In an ongoing wave of migration across the Mediterranean, 2016 was the worst year for fatalities so far, with smugglers filling increasingly unseaworthy vessels far beyond capacity.

More than 250 people have been reported dead or missing in the first weeks of 2017.