(ANSA-AFP) - GENEVA, MAR 21 - Last year was the deadliest
year for migrants, with nearly 9,000 people dying worldwide, the
United Nations said on Friday, calling the "tragedy...
unacceptable and preventable". "At least 8,938 people died on
migration routes worldwide in 2024," the fifth year that numbers
have reached record highs, the UN's migration agency said. "The
tragedy of the growing number of migrant deaths worldwide is
both unacceptable and preventable," said Ugochi Daniels, the
deputy director of the International Organization for Migration
(IOM). "Behind every number is a human being, someone for whom
the loss is devastating," Daniels said. "The actual number of
migrant deaths and disappearances is likely much higher, as many
have gone undocumented because of the dearth of official
sources," the IOM said. It added that the identities and other
details of the majority of victims were unknown. Asia, Africa
and Europe had record numbers of people dying in 2024 with
2,778, 2,242 and 233 respectively. A total of 2,452 people were
recorded as dying in the Mediterranean Sea, the main gateway for
those trying to reach Europe, it said. Final data were not
available yet for the Americas but figures so far show at least
1,233 people died. These included "an unprecedented 341 lives
lost in the Caribbean in 2024 and a record 174 deaths of
migrants crossing the Darien" jungle between Colombia and
Panama. The Darien jungle was at one point the main migratory
corridor for people trying to reach the United States.
(ANSA-AFP).
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