Fewer Migrants Are Reaching Europe by Sea but More People Are Dying, IOM Warns – WTOP News
The IOM said nearly 2,300 people died or went missing on Europe-bound sea routes as arrivals fell about 40% this year.
- On Thursday, the International Organization for Migration reported that sea arrivals of migrants and refugees to Europe fell nearly 40% to around 60,000 this year, even as journeys have become increasingly deadly.
- Nearly 2,300 people died or went missing crossing the Mediterranean Sea or Atlantic Ocean in 2026, compared to nearly 2,000 last year, often aboard unseaworthy, overcrowded boats departing from Libya.
- The Central Mediterranean route to Italy saw arrivals plummet from more than 48,000 to more than 21,000, while Greece reported a 47% rise in deaths despite roughly 5,000 fewer arrivals.
- IOM Director General Amy Pope stated "nearly every death is preventable," urging authorities to strengthen international cooperation, combat trafficking, and establish alternative legal migration pathways.
- Despite falling arrivals, the European Union agreed in June to new rules allowing migrant deportations outside the bloc as pressure from right-wing parties to tighten border policies intensifies.
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The UN Migration Agency (IOM) announced today that the number of migrants and refugees arriving in Europe by sea has dropped by more than a third since the beginning of the year, while the journeys themselves have become more deadly, reported the British agency Reuters (Reuters).
Fewer Migrants but More Deaths on European Sea Route, Says UN
Fewer migrants and refugees have tried to make the journey to Europe by sea this year but more have died in the attempt, the UN warned Thursday. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said 60,000 people had tried to get to Europe by boat so far this year, down 39 percent on the same period last year, AFP reported. But 2,292 had died, up from 1,999 last year. "Nearly every death and disappearance at sea is preventable," said IOM Direc…
Fewer migrants are reaching Europe by sea but more people are dying, IOM warns – WTOP News
Significantly fewer migrants are reaching Europe by sea this year, and yet more are dying as people take increasingly dangerous journeys to reach the continent, the U.N. migration agency warned Thursday. Nearly 60,000 migrants and refugees arrived on European shores in 2026 by Sept. 15, down nearly 40% compared to the same period last year,...
The arrivals of migrants and refugees in Europe have fallen sharply since the beginning of the year, but the number of deaths on maritime routes to the Old Continent continues to rise, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) announced on Thursday. ...
The International Organization for Migration reports a 39% decrease in arrivals by sea, while the human balance on the Mediterranean and Atlantic routes is increasing.
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