At Least 150 Child Refugees And Migrants Have Died Crossing Mediterranean So Far This Year

The route between Libya and the southern shores of Italy continues to be a death trap for migrants and refugees attempting to reach Europe in rickety boats.

And of the 898 deaths recorded in the central Mediterranean so far this year, at least 150 were children , UNICEF said in a press release Friday. Yet the true number of child casualties is almost certainly higher given that many children on the move are unaccompanied, so their deaths often go unreported.

This particular route has been more heavily trafficked in the past few months than during the same period last year, International Organization for Migration statistics show.

Almost 37,000 refugees and migrants , 13 percent of whom are children, arrived in southern Italy since the start of 2017, according to the IOM about 11,500 more than this time in 2016.

And this year is shaping up to be no less deadly than last year. The death toll as of April 19 was almost exactly the same as in the same period one year ago.

It is deeply concerning that vulnerable people, including thousands of children, are risking their lives to reach Europes shores using this incredibly dangerous route, said Afshan Khan, UNICEF regional director and special coordinator for the refugee and migrant crisis in Europe. This is further evidence that when safe and legal pathways to migration are cut off, desperate children and families will do whatever they can to flee conflict, poverty and depravation.

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