Latest news with #UgochiDaniels
Euronews
01-04-2025
- General
- Euronews
Migrant deaths hit new record high in 2024, United Nations agency says
ADVERTISEMENT At least 8,938 people died on migration routes worldwide in 2024, making it the deadliest year on record, according to the latest International Organization for Migration (IOM) figures. This number continues a five-year trend of increasing deaths each year, surpassing the previous record of 8,747 migrant deaths recorded in 2023. "The tragedy of the growing number of migrant deaths worldwide is both unacceptable and preventable. Behind every number is a human being, someone for whom the loss is devastating," said IOM Deputy Director General for Operations, Ugochi Daniels. July 2024 was the month with the highest number of deaths and missing persons, recording 1,130 individuals. Asia experienced the most deaths, with 2,778 people recorded, followed by Africa with 2,242 deaths, and Europe with 233. Across the world, deaths due to drowning, vehicle accidents, lack of adequate shelter, food, water, and violence remained the principal causes for people on the move. Since 2022, at least 10% of all migrant deaths recorded occurred because of violence. In Europe, the number decreased to 6%. In 2024, this was due in large part to violence against those in transit in Asia, with nearly 600 lives lost on migration routes across South and Southeastern Asia. Missing migrants not recovered from the sea or identified The actual number of migrant deaths and disappearances is likely much higher, as many deaths go undocumented due to a lack of official sources. Since 2014, the remains of more than 30,000 people who lost their lives during migration have not been recovered. According to the IOM's Missing Migrants Project, there are likely tens of thousands of families who have loved ones who disappeared along the Central and Western Mediterranean routes towards Europe alone. Related EU borders recorded over 120,000 migrant pushbacks in 2024, says report by NGOs "The rise in deaths is terrible in and of itself, but the fact that thousands remain unidentified each year is even more tragic," said Julia Black, coordinator of IOM's Missing Migrants Project. "Beyond the despair and unresolved questions faced by families who have lost a loved one, the lack of more complete data on risks faced by migrants hinders lifesaving responses." The deadliest route is the Central Mediterranean route, where more than 24,000 people have died in the last decade. ADVERTISEMENT In Europe, the migration routes which caused the most fatalities were the Western Balkans and the English Channel to the UK. The Western Balkans route is typically used by migrants, including asylum seekers, who arrive in Greece or Bulgaria from Turkey and are trying to reach Western or Northern Europe. "The increase in deaths across so many regions in the world shows why we need an international, holistic response that can prevent further tragic loss of life," said Daniels.
Gulf Today
22-03-2025
- Politics
- Gulf Today
Migrant deaths hit record in 2024, with 10% violently killed: UN agency
Last year was the deadliest on record for migrants, with nearly 9,000 people dying on perilous routes and one in 10 of those killed violently in incidents such as shootings, the UN migration agency said. In 2024, at least 8,938 people died on migration routes, with Asian routes being the most deadly followed by the Mediterranean crossing and Africa, which includes the Sahara Desert. "The increase in deaths across so many regions in the world shows why we need an international, holistic response that can prevent further tragic loss of life," International Organisation for Migration (IOM) Deputy Director General for Operations Ugochi Daniels said in a statement. At least 10% of the total migrant deaths were a result of violence — a category that includes shootings, stabbings and beatings and also encompasses state-authorised killings of migrants, IOM said. The countries with the highest number of such violent deaths occurred in Iran, Myanmar, Bangladesh and Mexico, an IOM spokesperson said, without saying who was responsible for the killings in each case. Cases of migrants drowning after being forcibly pushed back by coastguards at sea are not captured in the data on violent deaths, the spokesperson added. The IOM data goes back to 2014. Each year since 2021, the annual total of recorded migrant deaths has increased, with many thousands more thought to be unrecorded annually due to the lack of official records, IOM says. The Geneva-based agency is one of several groups helping displaced people that have been hit by major aid cuts from the United States, forcing it to scale back or shutter programmes in moves it says will have a severe impact on migrants. Reuters
Express Tribune
21-03-2025
- General
- Express Tribune
Nearly 9,000 migrants died in 2024, deadliest year on record: UN
Listen to article Last year was the deadliest on record for migrants, with nearly 9,000 people dying on perilous routes and one in 10 of those killed violently in incidents such as shootings, the UN migration agency said on Friday. In 2024, at least 8,938 people died on migration routes, with Asian routes being the most deadly followed by the Mediterranean crossing and Africa, which includes the Sahara Desert. "The increase in deaths across so many regions in the world shows why we need an international, holistic response that can prevent further tragic loss of life," International Organization for Migration (IOM) Deputy Director General for Operations Ugochi Daniels said in a statement. At least 10% of the total migrant deaths were a result of violence -- a category that includes shootings, stabbings and beatings and also encompasses state-authorised killings of migrants, IOM said. The countries with the highest number of such violent deaths occurred in Iran, Myanmar, Bangladesh and Mexico, an IOM spokesperson said, without saying who was responsible for the killings in each case. Cases of migrants drowning after being forcibly pushed back by coastguards at sea are not captured in the data on violent deaths, the spokesperson added. The IOM data goes back to 2014. Each year since 2021, the annual total of recorded migrant deaths has increased, with many thousands more thought to be unrecorded annually due to the lack of official records, IOM says. The Geneva-based agency is one of several groups helping displaced people that have been hit by major aid cuts from the United States, forcing it to scale back or shutter programmes in moves it says will have a severe impact on migrants.
Al Jazeera
21-03-2025
- General
- Al Jazeera
Migrant deaths hit record number in 2024, UN agency says
Nearly 9,000 people died last year trying to cross borders, the United Nations agency for migration says. The death toll set a new grim record for the fifth year in a row. The number of deaths on migratory routes has more than doubled since 2020. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) recorded 8,938 migrant deaths in 2024. The real death toll is likely much higher given that many deaths go unreported or undocumented, the IOM said in a statement on Friday. 'The rise of deaths is terrible in and of itself, but the fact that thousands remained unidentified each year is even more tragic,' Julia Black, coordinator of the IOM's Missing Migrants Project, said in the statement. The IOM's deputy director general for operations, Ugochi Daniels, said: 'The increase in deaths across so many regions in the world shows why we need an international, holistic response that can prevent further tragic loss of life.' 'Behind every number is a human being, someone for whom the loss is devastating,' he added. Asia was the region with the most reported fatalities with 2,788, followed by the Mediterranean Sea with 2,452 and Africa with 2,242. Final data are not yet in for the Americas, but at least 1,233 deaths (including 341 in the Caribbean) occurred in 2024. At least 233 migrants lost their lives in Europe and 174 in the Darien Gap between Colombia and Panama, a new record. According to the IOM, migrants are all people who leave their place of residence for any reason, for any length of time, whether voluntarily or involuntarily. Some seek asylum because they are fleeing war or violence. News of the record death toll comes days after the agency announced it was suspending many 'lifesaving' programmes around the world and firing hundreds of employees due to United States aid cuts, impacting millions of vulnerable migrants and refugees worldwide. The Geneva-based IOM is one of several groups helping displaced people that have been hit by major US aid cuts, forcing it to scale back or shutter programmes, which it said will have a severe impact on migrants.
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Migrant deaths hit record in 2024, UN agency says
GENEVA (Reuters) - Last year was the deadliest on record for migrants, with nearly 9,000 people confirmed to have died on perilous routes that include crossing the Sahara Desert or the Mediterranean Sea, the U.N. migration agency said on Friday. "The increase in deaths across so many regions in the world shows why we need an international, holistic response that can prevent further tragic loss of life," International Organization for Migration Deputy Director General for Operations Ugochi Daniels said in a statement. In 2024, at least 8,938 people died on migration routes, with Asian routes being the most deadly followed by the Mediterranean crossing and Africa, which includes the Sahara. The IOM data goes back to at least 2014. Each year since 2021, the annual total of recorded migrant deaths has increased, with many thousands more thought to be unrecorded annually due to the lack of official records, IOM says. The Geneva-based agency is one of several groups helping displaced people that have been hit by major aid cuts from the United States, forcing it to scale back or shutter programmes in moves it says will have a severe impact on migrants.
