IOM: Nearly 100 Dead or Missing Migrants in Mediterranean So Far in 2024

Migrants from Syria and Bangladesh are assisted on January 18, 2024 by a rescue team from the Spanish NGO Open Arms, off the Libyan coast, in international waters of the central Mediterranean. (AFP)
Migrants from Syria and Bangladesh are assisted on January 18, 2024 by a rescue team from the Spanish NGO Open Arms, off the Libyan coast, in international waters of the central Mediterranean. (AFP)
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IOM: Nearly 100 Dead or Missing Migrants in Mediterranean So Far in 2024

Migrants from Syria and Bangladesh are assisted on January 18, 2024 by a rescue team from the Spanish NGO Open Arms, off the Libyan coast, in international waters of the central Mediterranean. (AFP)
Migrants from Syria and Bangladesh are assisted on January 18, 2024 by a rescue team from the Spanish NGO Open Arms, off the Libyan coast, in international waters of the central Mediterranean. (AFP)

Nearly 100 migrants have died or disappeared in the central and eastern Mediterranean since the beginning of 2024, more than double the toll recorded last year during the same period, the UN migration agency said on Monday.

The comment was made during an Italy-Africa Conference in Rome attended by more than two dozen African leaders and European Union officials to discuss economic ties and ways to curb undocumented migration to Europe.

"The latest record of deaths and disappearances is a stark reminder that a comprehensive approach that includes safe and regular pathways... is the only solution that will benefit migrants and states alike," said Amy Pope, director general of the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

IOM's Missing Migrants Project found that 3,041 migrants were dead or went missing in the Mediterranean last year - a significant increase over the 2,411 toll in 2022.

Earlier this month, some 40 Tunisian migrants went missing after setting off in a boat toward the Italian coast.

Tunisia has replaced Libya as a main departure point for Mediterranean crossings for people fleeing poverty and conflict.



Trump Demurs on US Involvement on Iran, Araghchi Hints it Can Step in to End Fighting

US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney (not pictured) at the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada, June 16, 2025. (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney (not pictured) at the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada, June 16, 2025. (Reuters)
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Trump Demurs on US Involvement on Iran, Araghchi Hints it Can Step in to End Fighting

US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney (not pictured) at the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada, June 16, 2025. (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney (not pictured) at the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada, June 16, 2025. (Reuters)

US President Donald Trump declined on Monday to answer what it would take for US to be directly involved in the growing conflict between Israel and Iran, saying he did not want to talk about the issue.

Instead, he continued to press Iran on negotiations on its nuclear program.

“They should talk, and they should talk immediately,” Trump said during a bilateral meeting with the Canadian prime minister during the G7 summit.

Trump added: “I’d say Iran is not winning this war.”

Earlier, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi appeared to make a veiled outreach Monday for the US to step in and negotiate an end to dayslong hostilities between Israel and Iran.

In a post on X, the website formerly known as Twitter, Araghchi wrote that if Trump is “genuine about diplomacy and interested in stopping this war, next steps are consequential.”

“It takes one phone call from Washington to muzzle someone like Netanyahu,” Iran’s top diplomat continued. “That may pave the way for a return to diplomacy.”

The message to Washington comes as the most recent round of talks between US and Iran was canceled over the weekend after Israel targeted key military and political officials in Tehran on Thursday.