NATO Left Libyan Refugees To Die

• Why did Nato initially state it had no record of any distress calls regarding the migrant boat, only to later admit that a fax from the Italian coastguard detailing the boat's plight and position had been received by its headquarters in Naples on 27 March?

• Given that Nato was aware the migrant boat was in trouble and that one of the units under its command – the Mendez Núñez, a Spanish frigate – was in the immediate vicinity, why was no rescue attempted?

• Nato claims it forwarded the emergency message to all its units, but the Spanish ministry of defence has insisted the Mendez Núñez did not receive any communication regarding the migrant boat. Who is right?

• If there was any confusion over the urgency of the distress calls, as Nato has claimed, why was clarification not sought from the Italian maritime rescue co-ordination centre in Rome? MORE