The latest data from the International Organization for Migration showed that about 7,904 people died or went missing on migration routes in 2025, bringing the number of victims since 2014 to more than 80,000, in light of an unprecedented reduction in aid and restriction of information about irregular routes. The report pointed to changing migration patterns in the Americas, Europe and the Bay of Bengal, with the deadliest year recorded for the Rohingya refugee path, amid a warning of a “global failure” to prevent avoidable deaths and an urgent call for political will to protect migrants and their families.
Published on: 04/22/2026 - 01:02
The International Organization for Migration reported that nearly 7,900 people died or went missing on various migration routes during the year 2025, bringing the total toll since 2014 to more than 80,000 dead or missing victims, according to data from its Missing Migrants Project.
The United Nations believes that the absence of safe alternatives pushes migrants to take dangerous and unusual routes, stressing that countries are capable, if there is political will, of reducing the number of deaths and saving more lives on migration routes around the world.
According to documented estimates, 7,904 deaths and disappearances were recorded in 2025, a lower number than the 2024 total of about 9,200 cases, which is the highest ever. However, the organization stresses that these numbers represent only the minimum, and at the same time reveal the urgency of the need for urgent action to stop the deaths and meet the needs of families left without answers.
The organization indicated that the year 2025 witnessed unprecedented levels of aid reduction and the restriction of information related to irregular routes, which contributed to an increase in the number of migrants who go missing. It also highlighted that the continuation and worsening of deaths and disappearances reflects a global failure to put an end to avoidable losses.
US border changes
In the Americas, a sharp decline in migratory movement northward via the Central American route was observed compared to 2024. Maria Moita, Director of Humanitarian Response and Recovery at the International Organization for Migration, attributed this shift mainly to major changes in US immigration policies and the closure of the southern border, noting that the decrease in the number of deaths on this route may also be linked to a lack of data from the United States and Mexico and a decline in monitoring capabilities due to reduced funding.
In Europe, the total number of irregular arrivals has declined, but movement patterns have changed. Bangladeshis have become the largest expatriate group, while the number of Syrians has decreased in light of political transformations.
About 3,400 deaths and disappearances were recorded on the sea routes leading to the continent, including 1,330 cases on the Central Mediterranean route and more than 1,200 on the West Africa/Atlantic route to the Canary Islands. Nearly 900 deaths and disappearances were also counted in the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea, a route used almost exclusively by Rohingya refugees, making it the bloodiest year ever there.
For her part, Director-General of the International Organization for Migration, Amy Pope, stressed that migration paths change under the influence of conflicts, climate pressures, and political changes, while the risks remain “very real,” explaining that behind every number are people embarking on dangerous journeys and families waiting for news that may never come.
It revealed that at least 340,000 members of the families of missing migrants have been directly affected since 2014, and are bearing heavy psychological, social, legal and economic consequences, at a time when the organization stresses the need for a sustainable political will to save lives and highlight the suffering of these families and the losses that could have been avoided.
France 24/AFP
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