880 lives lost in Mediterranean shipwrecks over last week:UN

UNHCR spokesman William Spindler said on Tuesday that this year is proving to be “particularly deadly” on the Mediterranean, with some 2,510 lives lost compared to 1,855 in the same span a year ago.

UNHCR, the U.N. refugee agency, said survivors’ accounts indicate that shipwrecks and capsized boats have claimed at least 880 lives over the last week in the Mediterranean.

UNHCR, the U.N. refugee agency, said survivors’ accounts indicate that shipwrecks and capsized boats have claimed at least 880 lives over the last week in the Mediterranean. (AP Photo)

UNHCR spokesman William Spindler said on Tuesday that this year is proving to be “particularly deadly” on the Mediterranean, with some 2,510 lives lost compared to 1,855 in the same span a year ago.

Authorities and international organisations had previously reported that some 700 migrants and refugees had perished in Mediterranean shipwrecks over three days last week, the deadliest known tally in over a year.

Spindler reiterated the UNHCR’s appeal to the European Union to allow more legal pathways for refugees to reach Europe, and said it was “shameful” that the bloc had resettled fewer than 2,000 people under a plan announced last year to resettle 160,000.