The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) says at least 56 migrants died in separate shipwrecks off the coasts of Senegal and Greece over the weekend, highlighting the deadly risks associated with irregular migration across the Atlantic and Mediterranean seas.
IOM Director-General, Amy Pope, on Monday, November 9, 2026, described the incidents as a tragic reminder of the dangers migrants face while seeking better opportunities. She said smugglers and traffickers continued to exploit vulnerable people by charging them for dangerous journeys aboard boats unfit for sea travel. Pope called for stronger international action against the networks and the provision of safe and legal migration pathways.
According to Senegalese authorities and public reports, at least 34 people died on Friday when a migrant boat capsized near Loumpoul, off northwestern Senegal, between Dakar and Saint-Louis. One survivor was rescued, while an unknown number of people remained missing as search operations continued. The death toll was still provisional.
In separate incidents south of Crete, Greece, at least 22 migrants died after boats departing from eastern Libya got into distress. Greek authorities rescued 28 Sudanese migrants and recovered eight bodies in one incident, with several people reported missing. In another, 18 survivors were rescued and 14 bodies recovered after a cargo ship spotted the vessel in distress.
The IOM said rising arrivals along the eastern Libya–Crete route, combined with gaps in search-and-rescue capacity, were increasing concerns over migrant safety. It added that at least 454 deaths and disappearances had been recorded on the Western African Atlantic Route as of Oct. 26, noting that the figures were minimum estimates because many boats disappear without trace.
The organisation called for coordinated search and rescue, support for survivors and families of missing migrants, stronger action against smuggling networks and expanded safe, regular migration pathways.
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