New York, US (PANA) – The UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR, has said new data on irregular crossings of the Mediterranean in the third quarter of 2013 show an alarming increase in the numbers of people perishing while attempting to make the journey to Europe.
“We are failing to heed the lessons from the terrible events of last October, and more and more refugees are drowning trying to reach safety,” Mr. Antonio Guterres, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), said in a statement Friday.
Mr. Guterres was referring to the tragic incident a year ago this week in which a boat carrying migrants from Libya caught fire and sank within sight of the Italian island of Lampedusa, leaving 368 people dead and just 155 survivors.
According to the agency, 90,000 people crossed to Europe between July 1st, and September 30, and at least 2,200 lost their lives, compared to 75,000 people and 800 deaths for the period between 1 Jan. and 30 June.
In all, 165,000 people have made the crossing so far this year, compared to 60,000 for all of 2013 – making 2014 a record year and reflecting the level of desperation among many of those involved.
It said while the full reasons for this year’s increases both in crossings and deaths are not known, a number of factors appear to be involved, including growing insecurity in Libya, which has hit asylum-seekers and migrants from sub-Saharan Africa or the Middle East and prompted many to flee.
UNHCR said Libya must play its part in ensuring respect for the principles of human rights and international law, because weak law enforcement is allowing people smuggling networks to prosper.
It said last month’s tragedy off Malta, in which as many as 500 people were killed when their boat was reportedly sunk by smugglers, left only 11 survivors, and those few that survived spent days in the water watching helplessly as family members and friends perished.
“European Union countries must work together to continue and bolster the vital task, which has been mostly carried out by Italy’s Mare Nostrum operation, but also by commercial vessels of rescuing people at sea,” the UNHCR chief said
