At least 606 people have died or gone missing in the Mediterranean while trying to reach Europe since the start of 2026, marking the deadliest start to a year in over a decade, according to the UN's International Organization for Migration (IOM). The figure includes 30 people feared dead after a boat capsized off Greece on Saturday, with 20 rescued and four bodies recovered.
The boat had departed from Tobruk, Libya, on 19 February and overturned about 20 nautical miles south of Kali Limenes, Crete. The IOM described the period as 'the deadliest start to a year since IOM began recording such data in 2014' and called for increased search and rescue efforts in the central Mediterranean.
In Italy, the bodies of 15 people believed to have drowned during January storms have washed ashore in Calabria and Sicily over the past week. A student discovered the body of a man wearing an orange life jacket near Tropea, Calabria, while a woman's body was found in the same area. Further bodies have been recovered on the island of Pantelleria.
Bishops in Calabria and Sicily condemned migration policies on Sunday, stating the drownings were not isolated tragedies but the result of 'inhumane political choices'. They urged that success should not be measured 'by counting only those who arrive, while not considering those who die'.
The criticism follows the Italian government's approval of a bill authorising naval blockades to stop boats during periods of 'exceptional pressure'. This is part of a broader crackdown by Giorgia Meloni's far-right government, including measures against charity rescue ships, harsher penalties for smugglers, and schemes to repatriate migrants. Italy's interior ministry reported 66,296 boat arrivals in 2025, a slight decrease from the previous year and half the 2023 figure, following reinforced deals with Libya and Tunisia.
