May 31, 2016
GENEVA—The treacherous Mediterranean Sea crossing from Libya to Italy has claimed the lives of over 1,030 migrants in the last week, mostly as barely seaworthy smuggling boats foundered and sank despite calm seas and sunny skies, a migration agency said Tuesday, citing new accounts from survivors.
The death toll foreshadows more disasters ahead in the next few months as the region gears up for its traditional summer-fall spike in human trafficking as the weather improves and the seas grow warmer. Aid officials said it also suggests that Libyan smuggling gangs are using even riskier tactics than before to profit from the torrent of those desperate to reach the safety or economic promise of Europe.
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Also see:
- More shipwrecks in Mediterranean claim migrants’ lives, spur recriminations, Washington Post, June 3, 2016
Common-Sense Steps to Deal With the Migrant Crisis, New York Times, June 9, 2016
