The Central Mediterranean route has always been the most dangerous route because of the length of the journey, and smugglers continue to overfill unseaworthy vessels with desperate migrants. Most of the deaths, 2,484, occurred on the so-called Central Mediterranean route from North Africa to Italy, where some 70,000 people crossed in the first half of 2016. He added that further study needs to be done to determine whether other factors in the rising death toll may be at play, like whether the overland journey to the coast has become so grueling that migrants undertake the Mediterranean crossing already undernourished and exhausted. Some 154,000 arrived in Greece in the first half of the year, but almost all in the first three months. Laczko said there are no indications that the EU-Turkey agreement has been forcing people to attempt the more perilous Central Mediterranean crossing, though in recent days there have been reports of some trying to make it to Italy from Egypt.

Source: thestar August 23, 2016 15:40 UTC