U2's Bono testifies before Congress on the refugee crisis

WASHINGTON — U2 front man Bono on yesterday called on members of Congress to take swift action to deal with the global refugee crisis and violent extremism, saying lawmakers need to confront an "existential threat" to Europe that hasn't been seen since the 1940s.

In testimony before a Senate subcommittee, Bono drew a bleak picture as he described the flood of people fleeing their homes in the Middle East, Asia and Africa. The human torrent threatens the very idea of European unity, he said.

He urged lawmakers to think of foreign aid as national security instead of charity. "When aid is structured properly, with a focus on fighting poverty and improving governance, it could just be the best bulwark we have against the extremism of our age," Bono said.

In Syria, five years of violence has killed more than 250,000 people and displaced another 11 million from their homes. Nearly 174,000 migrants have reached Europe by sea since the beginning of this year alone, and 723 are missing or dead, many drowning in the waters of the Mediterranean, according to the International Organization for Migration.

Bono co-founded the One Campaign, an advocacy group that works to end poverty and preventable disease.