Loss of One Hundred African Refugees in a Single Month

According to the most recent United Nations report, nearly one hundred African refugees have lost their lives or gone missing while attempting to traverse the Mediterranean Sea in the initial month of 2024. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) reveals that this figure has doubled compared to the corresponding period last year.

Addressing the issue, Amy Pope, the head of the IOM, urgently emphasized the critical necessity for secure and legal migration routes to safeguard the lives of asylum seekers during the "Africa Summit" held in Rome on Monday. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, the host of the summit, has outlined plans to counter what she refers to as "illegal immigration" in collaboration with African leaders.

The mounting death toll among asylum seekers in the Mediterranean is becoming increasingly alarming. According to reports from the International Organization for Migration, the number of refugee deaths was 2,048 in 2021, which increased to 2,411 in 2022 and further rose to 3,041 in 2023. The Mediterranean Sea remains the most perilous route for asylum seekers.

In the summer of 2023, the European Union and Tunisia entered into an agreement aimed at restricting migration across the Mediterranean Sea. Giorgia Meloni underscored the significance of this agreement in curbing the influx of refugee boats from Tunisia, a crucial transit route for migrants heading to the EU from the North African coast. However, reports of the mistreatment of asylum seekers by the border guards of Libya and Tunisia led to the suspension of this agreement last year.

_{Source: IOM}