According to a new report published by the United Nations’ International Organization for Migration (IOM) on Wednesday, April 13, the first quarter of this year has been the deadliest on record since 2017 for migrants in the Central Mediterranean region.
The report, prepared under the IOM’s Missing Migrant Project, recorded a total of 441 migrant deaths between January 1 and March 31 in the Central Mediterranean region. It states that this is at most a conservative figure and actual numbers may be higher, with the IOM still investigating some incidents in this period.
The Central Mediterranean region includes the coasts of countries such as war-ravaged Libya and Tunisia, from where the number of people from sub-Saharan Africa migrating to Europe has increased following President Kais Saied’s racist remarks. A number of these migrants have sought to travel to Italy.
On Tuesday, at least 10 people from sub-Saharan Africa were killed and more than 20 others went missing after their boat sank off the Tunisia coast while trying to cross to Europe. The overcrowded boat had over 100 migrants on board.
The Central Mediterranean route has been described as the most dangerous for the migrants fleeing wars, conflicts, and poverty. According to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, one of every six people who leave the African coast to go to Europe as migrants/refugees dies on the way.
More than 20,700 people have either died or gone missing at sea in the Central Mediterranean region alone since 2014. The total number of such deaths/disappearances in the entire Mediterranean is over 26,000.
The report also notes that delays by countries in launching Search and Rescue (SAR) operations and hindrances caused by them to private rescue operations were responsible for the deaths of over 200 people. There were instances where countries did not respond to distress calls by people stranded at sea in small, overcrowded boats without food, water, or other essential amenities, leading to their deaths.
The European Union reportedly spent over US$ 64 million last year to fund countries like Libya to prevent the flow of migrants to Europe, and has been found to be complicit in large-scale human rights violations and crimes committed against migrants by such countries.
