Smugglers Lead At Least 600 To Their Deaths in the Med So Far This Year

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has revealed an estimated 600 people have been led by smugglers to their deaths in the first three months of this year, a surge in numbers compared to prior years.

According to the IOM, around 600 migrants have either been reported dead or missing in the first three months of this year while trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea by boat from the coast of North Africa.

The number is a significant increase from last year, in which 1,500 people were reported missing or dead for the entire year along the Central Mediterranean migrant route and is approaching levels not seen since 2014, a report from the European Union-funded website InfoMigrants reports.

The Central Mediterranean migrant route has been the deadliest in Europe for years, with some groups claiming that the number of deaths could even be higher than those reported by the IOM, and the number of death has coincided with a larger number of people attempting to make the dangerous crossing.

So far this year, the central Mediterranean route has seen a 28.5 per cent increase in arrivals from North Africa to Italy with the Italian Interior Ministry claiming that at least 17,690 migrants have arrived in the country this year.

While last year, the largest number of migrants came from Tunisia, this year has seen a surge of Egyptian nationals, who now make up 21 per cent of all the illegals who have arrived in Italy so far this year.

Italian Interior Minister Luciana Lamorgese warned that migrant arrivals could increase even further due to a lack of grain shipments from Ukraine and Russia due to the ongoing Russian invasion and military operation.

We are concerned because the situation is serious for those African countries, such as Tunisia and Egypt, which take 50 per cent of cereals from Ukraine and Russia and are now in difficulty,” Lamorgese said last week.

Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko, meanwhile, has suggested that grain shipments could resume if the west eases serious sanctions against his country.

Follow Chris Tomlinson on Twitter at @TomlinsonCJ or email at ctomlinson(at)breitbart.com.