Over 2,200 lives lost in the Mediterranean in 2024, UNICEF reports

UNICEF’s Special Coordinator for the Refugee and Migrant Response in Europe, Regina De Dominicis, revealed in a statement on Wednesday that over 2,200 lives were lost in the Mediterranean in 2024.

“The death toll and number of missing persons in the Mediterranean in 2024 have now surpassed 2,200, with nearly 1,700 lives lost on the central Mediterranean route alone,” she stated, highlighting that a significant portion of the victims were children.

“This includes hundreds of children, who make up one in five of all people migrating through the Mediterranean. The majority are fleeing violent conflict and poverty,” De Dominicis emphasised. 

De Dominicis’ statement came the sinking of a migrant boat traveling from Libya off the coast of Lampedusa just hours before the New Year, on Tuesday, leaving more than 20 people missing.

“This tragedy comes only weeks after another deadly incident off the island left an 11-year-old girl as the sole survivor,” she stated. 

Source: ekathimerini.com