Multiple bodies found with hands, feet tied in Mediterranean Sea
Spanish authorities have launched an investigation after discovering multiple corpses in the Mediterranean Sea whose hands and feet had been tied, police said on Monday.
According to regional daily Diario de Mallorca, since mid-May Civil Guard boats have spotted at least five bodies with their feet and hands bound. Police suspect that the victims may be migrants from North Africa, the Majorca Daily Bulletin reported.
Diario de Mallorca quoted investigators as saying that the migrants may have been tied up and thrown into the sea during the crossing, potentially due to a dispute with their smugglers.
The investigation into suspected homicide aims to identify the victims and work out the causes of their death, a Civil Guard spokeswoman told AFP.
The discovery shows "the cruelest side" of the irregular migration route, regional president Marga Prohens told local media.
Although most of the tens of thousands of Europe-bound migrants Spain receives arrive via the Canary Islands in the Atlantic, hundreds attempt the shorter crossing from north Africa to the Balearic archipelago in the Mediterranean.
Authorities said 31 bodies had been found in the waters and beaches of the archipelago between January and June of this year, the Majorca Daily Bulletin reported earlier this month.
In 2023, the United Nation's International Organization for Migration recorded 8,542 migrant deaths around the world – with 37% of these deaths occurring in the Mediterranean.
There have also been dramatic rescues in the region. Earlier this month, a charity ship rescued more than 50 migrants from an abandoned oil platform in the Mediterranean, where one woman gave birth, according to the Spain-based NGO Open Arms.
And in January, the Spanish coastguard rescued a baby that was born on an inflatable vessel carrying migrants to the Canary Islands.
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In the CPS-negative group (CPS < 1), PFS improved from 10.2 months in the control group to 13.6 months with atezolizumab (HR, 0.48; 95% CI, 0.28-0.82). Similarly, in the CPS-positive group (CPS ≥ 1), the median PFS increased from 10.5 months to 16.6 months (HR, 0.54; 95% CI, 0.39-0.74). Interaction tests showed no predictive effect of CPS for PFS ( P = .73), PFS2 ( P = .53), or OS ( P = .12). Commenting on these data, Lindemann emphasized that 'atezolizumab demonstrates efficacy in terms of providing a significant beneficial effect on PFS as well as interim OS, both in the intention-to-treat population, but also in the biomarker-evaluable population, and this efficacy was seen across all CPS cut-offs.' Stéphanie Lheureux, of Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto, Ontario, who served as the external discussant, provided context regarding the interpretation of these biomarker analyses. She highlighted critical differences between the BEATcc and Keynote 826 trials in their approach to biomarker assessment. 'It's important to note that for both trials, the primary endpoint was a dual primary endpoint with both OS and PFS, which was powered for the trial design. They both used the same specific CPS core biomarker, but the way they analyzed the biomarker was very different in the two trials,' Lheureux noted. She explained that, in Keynote 826, CPS score was prospectively assessed as a stratification factor and was well-balanced between groups, with CPS < 1 representing about 10% of the population. In contrast, the BEATcc biomarker analysis was conducted as a post hoc analysis, with 24% of patients lacking CPS scores and some imbalance between treatment groups. 'We need to be very careful when we look at subgroup analysis. The clinical trial design matters very much when we analyze the results,' Lheureux cautioned. 'If the subgroup analysis is not powered, it could just be hypothesis generating, and we need to be very careful of how we interpret this.' Clinical Implications and Future Perspectives The findings of BEATcc have already influenced clinical practice guidelines. 'The BEAT regimen is now listed as a preferred first-line regimen in these patients' in the updated National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines, reflecting the potential for broader application of atezolizumab regardless of biomarker status, Lindemann explained. Looking ahead, Lheureux emphasized that more sophisticated approaches to personalized treatment selection using biomarkers are needed. "We need to make sure biomarkers are context specific and appropriately validated with the right rigorous trials, and we need to assess the potential evolution of this biomarker with the tumor evolution and heterogeneity,' she said. Lindemann said the final OS analysis from the BEATcc trial is expected in 2026, which may provide additional insights into the long-term benefits of the atezolizumab combination across different biomarker subgroups. 'In the BEATcc trial, PD-L1 status does not seem to be a robust biomarker guiding patient selection for immunotherapy in this setting.' The findings suggest that atezolizumab, in combination with bevacizumab and chemotherapy, 'represents an effective first-line treatment option for patients with recurrent [or] metastatic cervical cancer and should actually be offered irrespective of CPS,' she concluded. Lindemann reports financial relationships with GSK, MSD, AstraZeneca, Karyopharm, Eisai, and Genmab. Lheureux reports financial relationships with AstraZeneca, Repare Therapeutics, GSK, Schrodinger, Merck, Roche, Seagen, AbbVie, Zai Lab, Gilead, and Eisai.
