UNICEF has once again drawn stark attention to the lethal dangers of the Central Mediterranean route following a tragic shipwreck off the Italian island of Lampedusa. The incident, involving a vessel that departed from the Libyan city of Al-Khums, resulted in the confirmed death of a pregnant woman and left several children missing.
Nicola Dell’Arciprete, UNICEF’s Country Coordinator for Italy, reported that the small fiberglass boat was carrying approximately 35 migrants, including four unaccompanied children. After two days at sea, the vessel capsized in international waters. The Italian Coast Guard managed to rescue 11 people and recover the body of the pregnant woman, but more than 20 individuals remain unaccounted for. The survivors and the deceased were transferred to Lampedusa for aid, as search efforts persist despite worsening weather.
Dell’Arciprete stressed that this latest tragedy “shines a spotlight again on the deadly risks faced by children and families crossing the Central Mediterranean,” adding that “every life lost at sea is a stark reminder of the urgent necessity for coordinated search and rescue, safe disembarkation, and community reception systems that guarantee access to protection and asylum services.”
Consequently, UNICEF urged European governments to utilise the Migration and Asylum Pact to prioritise child safeguarding, including ensuring safe and legal pathways, facilitating family reunification, and investing in essential child services like psychosocial support, legal aid, healthcare, and education.
Official figures underline the perilous nature of this corridor. Flavio Di Giacomo, spokesperson for the International Organization for Migration (IOM), stated that no fewer than 916 migrants have perished in the Central Mediterranean since the start of 2025. According to UN figures, the total death toll since 2014 now exceeds 32,700 people, with approximately one in every five victims being a child, cementing the Central Mediterranean route’s status as the world’s most dangerous passage for those fleeing conflict and poverty.
Separately, Italian Tax Police intercepted another vessel 16 nautical miles from Lampedusa carrying 85 migrants from Somalia, Eritrea, and Pakistan. This interception resulted in the discovery of two bodies and the critical hospitalisation of 14 individuals.