Alarming numbers of migrants are poised to flood into Europe from Libya, European Council president Donald Tusk warned.

Addressing the European parliament, he said there will be a repeat of the crisis that has seen more than a million land on the Greek islands unless urgent action is taken.

But the former Polish president admitted the EU will not be able to send arrivals back to the war-torn North African nation even though most are not genuine refugees.

'Convenient and easy solutions are hard to find in politics, and in this case, they are virtually impossible,' he said.

'What we are faced with is a perpetual, tenuous and multi-dimensional effort. In fact, something like a never-ending story.

His comments came after more than 4,000 migrants were rescued in the waters off Italy in just 48 hours.

Mr Tusk, who chaired negotiations last month between the EU and Turkey for a £4.7billion deal to stop people crossing the Aegean to Greek islands, said: 'We must remember that the Balkan route is not the only one.' 

'The numbers of would-be migrants in Libya are alarming. This means that we must be prepared to help.'

Source : MENA