Switzerland - The UN Migration Agency (IOM) reports that 72,336 migrants and refugees entered Europe by sea in 2017 through 7 June, with almost 85 percent arriving in Italy and the remainder divided between Greece, Cyprus and Spain. This compares with 207,729 arrivals across the region through 7 June 2016.

IOM Rome spokesperson Flavio Di Giacomo reported that since Tuesday, when IOM last released figures, some 400 migrants had been rescued by the NGO Proactiva and brought to Augusta, Italy.

Worldwide, the IOM Missing Migrants Project (MMP) reports that there have been 2,425 fatalities through 7 June (see chart below) with the Mediterranean region accounting for the largest proportion of deaths – just over 70 per cent the global total.

In recent days MMP researchers have recorded the following incidents: seven migrants died of suffocation inside a truck in Libya; nine migrants from Afghanistan and Pakistan died in a vehicle accident on a highway near Pazardjik, Bulgaria; 21 bodies washed up in Zarzis and Houmt Souk Jerba, Tunisia. Four bodies were recovered by Save the Children in the Channel of Sicily; and one migrant was electrocuted in a train station in Thessaloniki, Greece. MMP added 15 to the total number (112) of deaths along the U.S. Mexico border, because of new data provided by officials of Pima County, Arizona, where many migrants have died during the past decade trying to enter the U.S. across a harsh desert.

Although not yet added to the Missing Migrants Project data base, IOM Libya’s Christine Petré reported Thursday (8/6) that the body of one migrant was retrieved this week in Gabes, Tunisia. Petré said the total number of migrant corpses recovered this year in Libya is 236, while 8,293 migrants have been rescued in the Libyan waters so far in 2017.

IOM Libya reported this week that so far in 2017, 4,594 stranded migrants have been able to return from Libya to 18 different countries of origin. Of those, 1,538 have been allocated reintegration assistance.

On 1 and 6 June, IOM helped 337 stranded Senegalese migrants, including one woman and one medical case to return home from Libya. Of those migrants, 119 had previously been in Triq Al Seka detention centre while 91 were in Abu Slim and another 116 in Gharyan Al Hamra detention centres. The remaining 10 migrants resided in the urban areas of the Libyan capital Tripoli.

Two days later, on 8 June, 138 stranded male migrants, including four unaccompanied minors, received return assistance home to The Gambia.

The three charter flights, which departed Tripoli’s Mitiga airport, were coordinated with the Libyan authorities, the Gambian and Senegalese Embassies and respective IOM colleagues in receiving countries.

The charter flights are part of IOM’s Voluntary Humanitarian Return and Reintegration assistance funded by the European Union Emergency Trust Fund and the UK Department for International Development.

For the latest Mediterranean Update infographic: http://migration.iom.int/docs/MMP/090617_Mediterranean_Update.pdf

For latest arrivals and fatalities in the Mediterranean, please visit: http://migration.iom.int/europe

Learn more about the Missing Migrants Project at: http://missingmigrants.iom.int

For further information, please contact:
Joel Millman at IOM HQ, Tel: +41 79 103 8720, Email: jmillman@iom.int
Flavio Di Giacomo at IOM Italy, Tel: +39 347 089 8996, Email: fdigiacomo@iom.int
Kelly Namia at IOM Greece, Tel: +30 210 991 2174, Email: knamia@iom.int
Julia Black at IOM GMDAC, Tel: +49 30 278 778 27, Email: jblack@iom.int
Christine Petré at IOM Libya, Tel: +216 29 240 448, Email: chpetre@iom.int