At least 990 people have died or gone missing in the Mediterranean Sea since January 2026, with over 180 more feared dead or unaccounted for following a fresh wave of shipwrecks in early April, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has warned.
The IOM said the Central Mediterranean alone has recorded around 765 deaths this year, more than double the 287 deaths recorded during the same period in 2025, making it one of the most devastating starts to a year along the route since the agency began tracking migrant deaths in 2014.
The latest and deadliest incident occurred on April 5, when a wooden vessel carrying around 120 people capsized in the Central Mediterranean after departing from Tajoura, Libya. The boat took on water in rough weather before overturning, leaving more than 80 people unaccounted for. Thirty-two survivors were rescued by a merchant vessel and a tugboat and later brought to Lampedusa by the Italian Coast Guard. Two bodies were recovered, while around 70 others remained missing.
Earlier, on April 1, Italian coastguard vessels recovered 19 bodies from a boat drifting south of Lampedusa. Survivors said the boat had left Zuara, Libya, in the early hours of March 29 and became stranded at sea after its engine failed, fuel ran out and food was exhausted as weather deteriorated, with several people reported in critical condition. Initial testimonies from survivors pointed to hypothermia as a likely cause of death, though circumstances remain under investigation.
On the same day, a separate tragedy unfolded in the Aegean Sea off Bodrum, Turkey. Nineteen Afghan migrants, including a baby, died when an inflatable dinghy capsized, with rescue teams pulling 21 people alive from the water before one survivor later died in hospital.
Earlier incidents compounded the toll. On March 28, at least 22 people died off Crete after a vessel departed from eastern Libya, while a March 30 shipwreck near Sfax, Tunisia, left 19 dead and around 20 missing.
The IOM Director General Amy Pope called for urgent coordinated action. “These tragedies show, once again, that far too many people are still risking their lives on dangerous routes,” she said. “Saving lives must come first. But we also need stronger, unified efforts to stop traffickers and smugglers from exploiting vulnerable people, and to expand safe and regular pathways.”
Despite the rising death toll, crossing attempts have declined, with researchers and aid groups pointing to violent storms, restricted rescue operations and tightened border policies as factors driving the surge in fatalities. Italy has recorded about 6,200 arrivals in 2026, down from roughly 9,400 during the same period in 2025.
The IOM renewed calls for expanded search and rescue capacity and broader legal migration pathways, warning that documented deaths almost certainly undercount the true scale of lives lost.
