According to the UN, more refugees have drowned on their way across the Mediterranean in the first three months of this year than in six years. Between January and March, 441 people lost their lives on this route towards Europe, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) announced on Wednesday. According to the Tunisian coast guard, ten people died on Tuesday trying to sail the Mediterranean Sea.
IOM Director Antonio Vitorino cited “delays and gaps” in European search and rescue missions as the reasons for the increase in the number of deaths. In at least six accidents since the beginning of the year, rescue delays have resulted in a total of 127 deaths. In a seventh accident, no help was sent. The EU has scaled back its attempts to find and rescue refugees in distress at sea in recent months.
“The human catastrophe that is happening in the Mediterranean Sea is unacceptable,” said Vitorino. He called for “a proactive coordination of the EU countries” in the search and rescue of migrants in distress at sea. More than 20,000 people have died in the Mediterranean since 2014.
In the most recent refugee disaster off the Tunisian coast on Tuesday, 72 people were rescued and 20 to 30 migrants were still missing, the Tunisian coast guard said on Wednesday. Just last weekend, 27 refugees from countries south of the Sahara died in the same region.
Tunisia is an important transit country for refugees who want to reach Europe via the dangerous Mediterranean route. The Italian island of Lampedusa is less than 150 kilometers from the Tunisian coast. According to the IOM, 3,000 refugees reached Italy on the Easter weekend alone. More than 31,000 people have arrived there since the beginning of the year.
Crossing the central Mediterranean is considered the world’s deadliest route for migrants and refugees. Nevertheless, every year tens of thousands dare the dangerous crossing on often hardly seaworthy boats in the hope of a better life in Europe.