More migrants are dying as sea crossing risks rise
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NEW and more dangerous smuggling practices and attempts to reach Europe by riskier routes have led to a spike in the number of migrants dying as they attempt to cross the Mediterranean, according to a new analysis released yesterday.
The International Organization for Migration’s Global Migration Data Analysis Center in Berlin said 2,901 people died or disappeared crossing the Mediterranean in the first six months of 2016, a 37 percent increase over the first six months of last year.
Most of the deaths, 2,484, occurred on the so-called Central Mediterranean route from North Africa to Italy, where some 70,000 people crossed in the first half of 2016.
“The numbers have not increased hugely in terms of those crossing, but the risk of death remains high and is increasing,” said Frank Laczko, head of the Berlin center.
The Central Mediterranean route has always been the most dangerous route because of the length of the journey, and smugglers continue to overfill unseaworthy vessels with desperate migrants.
Adding to the problem now, however, are more frequent instances where smugglers are sending multiple boats at once, making rescue operations more difficult. In addition, newer routes are longer and riskier, and search and rescue efforts are often carried out farther away from land.
“Smugglers are showing absolutely no interest in the welfare of the people who are paying for their services, and cramming unseaworthy vessels with more and more people to increase profits,” Laczko said. He added that further study needs to be done to determine whether other factors in the rising death toll may be at play, like whether the overland journey to the coast has become so grueling that migrants undertake the Mediterranean crossing already undernourished and exhausted.
The number of deaths in the Central Mediterranean peaked in May at 1,130, and dropped to 388 in June, 208 in July and only 29 so far in August, but Laczko said it’s too early to tell whether this may be part of a trend.
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