&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "‘Nearly 8,000 dead or missing’: UN data exposes scale of migrant deaths in 2025, Europe’s sea routes most deadly")
Nearly 8,000 people died or disappeared while migrating in 2025, according to new data from the International Organization for Migration (IOM). The agency reported 7,904 fatalities and missing persons globally, taking the total since 2014 to more than 82,000. It warned that around 340,000 family members have been directly affected by these losses. The sea routes to Europe were most deadly and many victims lost in "invisible shipwrecks", a UN agency said on Tuesday.
The IOM described the figures as evidence of “our collective failure to prevent these tragedies,” Maria Moita, head of the organisation’s humanitarian and response department, said at a Geneva press briefing, according to Reuters.
Europe sea routes account for highest share of deaths
More than four in every ten recorded deaths or disappearances occurred on sea routes towards Europe. The IOM highlighted the continued danger of so-called ‘invisible shipwrecks’, in which entire boats sink or vanish without trace, leaving no bodies or survivors.
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Although the overall toll was lower than the 9,197 deaths recorded in 2024, the agency said the reduction was partly due to around 1,500 suspected cases that could not be verified because of aid and monitoring gaps. This, it added, means the real figure may be higher.
Shifting routes, persistent risks
Data drawn from the IOM’s Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) and Missing Migrants Project (MMP) shows that migration routes are shifting rather than easing. The DTM tracks movement patterns and changing corridors, while the MMP compiles deaths and disappearances using official records, media reports and field data.
The West African route towards the Canary Islands accounted for around 1,200 deaths. In Asia, fatalities reached a record level, including hundreds of Rohingya refugees fleeing violence in Myanmar and precarious conditions in Bangladesh’s camps.
According to Reuters, IOM Director General Amy Pope said in a statement: “Routes are shifting in response to conflict, climate pressures and policy changes, but the risks are still very real.” She added, “Behind these numbers are people taking dangerous journeys and families left waiting for news that may never come.”
Despite regional variations in arrivals, the report concludes that migration remains highly dangerous, with changing routes often exposing people to even greater risks at sea and across remote land corridors.
