Report: More migrants die in Mediterranean as risks increase
BERLIN — 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 Tuesday.
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 per cent 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 centre.