Migrant Deaths and Displacement Soar in 2014

By Frontera NorteSur
December 18, 2014

Celebrated every December 18, International Migrants Day is an occasion to honor the contributions of immigrants across the globe. For 2014, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) had sobering news.

According to the Geneva-based organization, nearly 5,000 migrants perished worldwide while attempting to reach their promised lands. The fatal toll was more than double 2013’s number, jumping from 2,778 deaths to 4,868 deaths. The OIM identified the Mediterranean Sea, where more than 3,000 migrants perished trying to cross the body of water that separates Europe from Africa and Asia, as the deadliest route.

In second and third place, respectively, were the Bay of Bengal (540 deaths) and the U.S.-Mexico border (307 deaths). The IOM did not specify on which side of the U.S.-Mexico line the reported deaths occurred. Since many migrants remain disappeared, the death toll is likely an undercount.[...]

Read the full article:
http://fnsnews.nmsu.edu/migrant-deaths-and-displacement-soar-in-2014/