Migrant deaths hit record number in 2024, UN agency says

Nearly 9,000 people died last year trying to cross borders, the United Nations agency for migration says.

The death toll set a new grim record for the fifth year in a row. The number of deaths on migratory routes has more than doubled since 2020.Nearly 9,000 people died last year trying to cross borders, the United Nations agency for migration says.

The death toll set a new grim record for the fifth year in a row. The number of deaths on migratory routes has more than doubled since 2020.At least 233 migrants lost their lives in Europe and 174 in the Darien Gap between Colombia and Panama, a new record.

According to the IOM, migrants are all people who leave their place of residence for any reason, for any length of time, whether voluntarily or involuntarily. Some seek asylum because they are fleeing war or violence.

News of the record death toll comes days after the agency announced it was suspending many “lifesaving” programmes around the world and firing hundreds of employees due to United States aid cuts, impacting millions of vulnerable migrants and refugees worldwide.

The Geneva-based IOM is one of several groups helping displaced people that have been hit by major US aid cuts, forcing it to scale back or shutter programmes, which it said will have a severe impact on migrants.