Illegal migration of Bangladeshis to Europe through various Mediterranean routes saw an upsurge this year, raising concerns over the government measures to control it effectively.

EU president Donald Tusk strikes an unusually upbeat note on the migrant crisis as Turkey raised the possibility of taking back non-Syrian asylum seekers.

The migration issue will remain crucial in 2016, observes Sir Peter Sutherland, special representative of the UN Secretary-General (SRSG) on Migration and Development.

European Union leaders will gather for an emergency summit on the migration crisis, a day after ministers forced through a controversial deal to relocate 120,000 refugees in a major blow to unity within the bloc.

Another 24 Bangladeshis are likely to have met their watery grave off the coast of foreign land thousands of miles away from home.

Myanmar's navy seizes a boat packed with 727 people off the country's southern coast.

Myanmar and Bangladesh agreed to address the "root causes" of a migrant exodus at talks in Bangkok.