2023 Deadliest Year For Migrants: Nearly 9,000 Lives Lost, Violence Surges Worldwide

The previous year was the deadliest year ever for migrants as at least 8,938 individuals lost their lives during perilous attempts, as per the report by the United Nations International Organization for Migration (IOM) published on Friday. The report further added that a tenth of deaths were caused due to violent causes involving shootings, stabbings, and beatings.

The most fatal migrant routes in 2023 were those within Asia, followed by the Mediterranean and the African mainland, specifically across the Sahara Desert. IOM Deputy Director General for Operations, Ugochi Daniels, called for a pressing international response in order to reverse the trend of increasing deaths at sea and among migrants.

“Increases on several fronts remind us of the need for a global, collective response to stave off new tragedies,” said Daniels.

IOM said that at least 10% of migrant casualties in 2023 resulted from violence. The most fatalities of this nature happened in Iran, Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Mexico. No indication, however, was made by the agency of the perpetrators of these incidents. Also not counted under violent fatalities were the instances where migrants drowned reportedly after being pushed back by coastguards in the water.

The organization has been monitoring migrant deaths since 2014. From 2021, the annual number of deaths reported has grown, with thousands more thought to be unreported because there is no official record.

The IOM, like other humanitarian agencies, has suffered major funding cuts from the United States, leading it to cut or terminate several assistance programs. The agency warned that these reductions would have severe effects on migrants in need.