The migrant crossing between Africa and the Canary Islands is now world’s deadliest as almost 10,000 die.
In 2024, a total of 9,757 people died attempting to reach the Canary Islands in small boats, equating to an average of 28 deaths per day.
The annual Right to Life Monitoring report by Caminando Fronteras found a 62.4% increase in fatalities on the route compared to last year.
It found that nearly 90% of the deaths occurred between Africa and the Canary Islands with the remainder from Algeria to Balearic Islands, the Strait of Gibraltar and the Alboran Sea.
This year set a new record for asylum seekers in Spain, with 57,738 people reaching its shores, including 43,737 arriving in the Canary Islands. This surpasses the previous high of 37,498 in 2018.
Migrants leaving from the Mauritanian coast accounted for the highest number of deaths, with 6,829 fatalities. Another 2,197 people died leaving from Senegal and Gambia, and 801 from between Agadir, Morocco, and Dakhla in Western Sahara.
Among the victims were 1,538 children and 421 women, many fleeing violence, forced marriage, or genital mutilation.
April and May proved to be the deadliest months, with almost 23% of fatalities recorded during this period.
The report highlights systemic failures in search-and-rescue operations, citing “direct inaction” by rescue services in almost 70% of the 217 tragedies it investigated.
Helena Maleno, coordinator of the investigation, called it a “deep failure of rescue and protection systems,” calling for urgent measures to prioritise life-saving efforts and justice for victims and their families.
A total of 131 boats disappeared completely with all their passengers during the year, meaning tthe actual number of deaths may be even higher than recorded due to gaps in data collection.
Caminando Fronteras points to increasing climate change forcing migration, particularly in regions such as northern and eastern Mali, where desertification and resource conflicts have intensified.
Meanwhile, three cross-Channel migrants were killed in icy water yesterday when an overcrowded boat was stormed by a group of asylum seekers.
Chaos erupted at dawn on the Northern French Coast when 50 UK-bound refugees attempted to clamber on board a craft already loaded with 60 men, women and children.
