migration
IOM: 27 migrants died of thirst in the Sahara
According to the IOM, more than 5,600 migrants have died or disappeared in the Sahara since 2014 (symbol image). photo
© Jerome Delay/AP/dpa
17 months ago, a group of migrants made their way to Libya. But they never arrived. They got lost in a car in the desert before the car broke down.
According to the UN Organization for Migration (IOM), the bodies of 27 migrants who made their way north in the summer of 2021 were found in the Sahara. The people had died of thirst in the desert, said the IOM in Geneva. Among them were four minors.
The group is said to have left the town of Moussoro about 300 kilometers northeast of N’Djamena, the capital of Chad, 17 months ago, presumably towards Libya. They would probably have gotten lost in a car in the desert before the vehicle broke down and people were stranded without any help.
According to the IOM, more than 5,600 migrants have died or disappeared in the Sahara since 2014. So far this year there have been at least 149 deaths. Many deaths are not even registered, and the families of those who have disappeared are sometimes in the dark for years or forever as to what could have happened to their relatives. The IOM is committed to establishing safe migration routes for people who want to seek a better life in other countries.