Migrant Deaths in Middle East and North Africa Reach Alarming High in 2022: UN

The number of deaths recorded in 2022 on migration routes inside and from the Middle East and North Africa region was the highest since 2017, with 3,789 deaths recorded by the Missing Migrants Project, under the umbrella of the U.N.’s International Organization for Migration (IOM). More than half of the deaths occurred on sea routes, mainly the Mediterranean Sea, with ongoing wars, collapsing economies, and conflict and poverty in the region pushing people to seek refuge in Europe. The majority of victims remain unidentified, and violence has been the main cause of death on Middle Eastern land routes.