NEW YORK – United Nations Refugee Agency, has on Friday said, the increasing numbers of people perishing while attempting to crossover to Europe illegally is alarming.
The UN High Commission for Refugees, (UNHCR) said that the new data was shown on the irregular crossings of the Mediterranean in the third quarter of 2013.
“We are failing to heed the lessons from the terrible events of last October, and more refugees are drowning trying to reach safety’’, Mr Antonio Guterres, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), said. [eap_ad_1] Guterres was referring to the tragic incident in which a boat carrying migrants from Libya caught fire and sank within sight of the Italian island of Lampedusa leaving 368 people dead and 155 survivors.
According to the UNHCR, 90,000 people crossed to Europe between July 1 and Sept. 30 and at least 2,200 lost their lives, compared to 75,000 people and 800 deaths between Jan.1 and June 30.
In all, 165,000 people have made the crossing so far this year, compared to 60,000 for all of 2013, making 2014 a record year and reflecting the level of desperation among many of those involved.
It said while the full reasons for this year’s increases both in crossings and deaths are not known, a number of factors appeared to be involved.
It included the growing insecurity in Libya, which has hit asylum-seekers and migrants from sub-Saharan Africa or the Middle East and prompted many to flee.
UNHCR said Libya must play its part in ensuring respect for the principles of human rights and international law, because weak law enforcement is allowing people smuggling networks to prosper. (PANA/NAN)
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