Nigerians Among 128 African Migrants Who Died While Crossing The Sea To Europe In 2017 – IOM

March 29, 2017 – 128 Nigerians Among The African Migrants Who Died While Crossing The Sea To Europe In 2017 – IOM

Int’l Organisation on Migration (IOM), said 128 migrants, comprising Nigerians and other West Africans, died while crossing Mediterranean Sea to Europe between March 6 and 26, 2017.

The UN agency in a statement by its spokesman Flavio Di Giacomo, stated that the number made it 649 deaths recorded in the first 86 days of 2017.

The IOM spokesperson said other nationals included Gambians, Ivorians, Ghanaians, Malians, Senegalese and Guineans (both Guinea-Bissau and Conakry).

Di Giacomo explained that 521 deaths were recorded in the first 65 days of 2017.

He said the number of deaths recorded in the first 86 days of 2017 was higher compared with 566 deaths recorded in the same period on March 26, 2016.

He said 26,589 migrants and refugees entered Europe by sea in 2017 through March 26, with over 80 per cent arriving in Italy and the rest in Spain and Greece.

Di Giacomo said the number was, however, lower compared with 163,895 recorded through the first 86 days of 2016.