Pope Leo XIV called on Europe on Saturday to strengthen its protection and integration of migrants during a symbolic visit to Lampedusa, the small Italian island that serves as one of the main entry points for people crossing the Mediterranean from North Africa. The trip deliberately coincided with the 250th anniversary of U.S. independence, allowing the first American-born pope to deliver a pointed message to leaders on both sides of the Atlantic at a moment of hardening immigration policy. Speaking during Mass at the island's sports arena, Leo described migration as a "momentous challenge" for European societies but insisted the continent has the capacity to respond with both compassion and long-term planning, calling for measures to "receive, protect, support and integrate" newcomers. In his homily, he invoked the parable of the Good Samaritan, saying migrants who died attempting the crossing were "victims both of decisions that were made and of decisions that were not made." Leo also visited the pier where rescued migrants are brought ashore, blessing a plaque dedicating the dock to his predecessor, Pope Francis, who chose Lampedusa for his first trip outside Rome after his 2013 election. At the island's "Gateway to Europe" monument commemorating those lost at sea, the pope briefly met a migrant family, including a child who told him how a paper ball had comforted him after arriving alone a decade earlier. The visit lands at a politically charged moment: the European Union approved new migration rules just two weeks ago expanding detention powers and authorizing deportation centers outside the bloc, while the Trump administration in Washington has intensified border enforcement and deportations. Leo, who has previously criticized the U.S. administration's immigration approach as "inhuman," used a separate July 4 message to Americans to argue that defending human life includes "welcoming, protecting and assisting immigrants," while also calling for greater "moderation" in U.S. political discourse. Lampedusa, which lies closer to Tunisia than to mainland Italy, has absorbed disproportionate strain from the crossings: more than 14,000 migrants have reached Italy by sea so far this year, with roughly 60% landing on the island โ€” a number exceeding its own resident population of about 6,000. The central Mediterranean route remains the deadliest migration corridor in the world, with more than 1,400 people, including 28 children, reported dead or missing this year alone, according to the International Organization for Migration. A UN refugee agency spokesperson said the pope's presence "sends a clear message at a time when the global political debate on migration is often framed around borders and deterrence rather than protection and shared responsibility."