Italy's president on Wednesday likened the hundreds of thousands of people seeking refuge in Europe to the plight of the Jews fleeing the Nazis during World War II,
"The sad tide of migrants from Asia, the Middle East and Africa is reminiscent of the tragedy of the Jews trying to escape Nazism," Sergio Mattarella told the European Parliament.
He also compared the migrants to those who risked their lives trying to scale the Berlin wall from East Germany or who crossed minefields to reach Austria from Hungary during the Cold War.
"This harmless army of people marching towards their personal safety are not our enemies," Mattarella said.
Europe's security must nonetheless be defended, he stressed.
Europe's border controls have come under renewed scrutiny since the terror attacks in Paris on 13 November claimed by the Islamic State militant group in which 130 people died and hundreds were injured.
Several EU countries have imposed border controls in recent weeks - despite the Schengen system of passport-free movement - amid the arrival of over 750,000 refugees this year, many of whom are fleeing conflict-wracked Syria and Iraq.
