2024 Deadliest Year for Migrants with Nearly 9,000 Deaths: UN Report

Last year was the deadliest year ever recorded for migrants, with nearly 9,000 immigrants dying on perilous journeys to developed countries, according to a report by the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

The most dangerous paths for migrants were in Asia, with the Mediterranean Sea crossing to Europe and the walks across Africa’s Sahara Desert coming in second. One in ten deaths were caused by violence, with many reports of shootings, stabbings, and beatings. The IOM also found that some deaths involved state authorities targeting migrants, but they didn’t specify what countries were responsible. Countries like Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Mexico saw the highest numbers of violent deaths among migrants.

The report also found that a lot of the deaths go unrecorded, because many governments fail to keep track of migrant deaths. For example, when individuals drown after being sent back by coastguards at sea, these deaths aren’t categorized as “violent” in the official records. Since the IOM began its data collection in 2014, the number of migrant deaths has increased each year since 2021.

The IOM said that aid cuts from countries, including the United States, are making it tougher for them to support migrants. The reduction in funding has forced the agency to either shut down or reduce programs that deliver food, shelter, and medical care to those on these journeys, and could result in more deaths.