In 2024, more than 1,690 people died or went missing while attempting to cross the Central Mediterranean Sea[1] – the second-highest number of deaths since 2017. At the same time, interceptions and forced returns to Libya and Tunisia increased, revealing the real reason behind the hailed decrease in arrivals in Italy. The cycles of exclusion and abuse at Europe’s external borders were further entrenched by the formal adoption of the European Union’s Pact on Migration and Asylum, which came into force in June.

In the same month, the MSF team on board the Geo Barents recovered the bodies of 11 people after a nine-hour-long search operation at sea, once again witnessing first-hand the impacts of violent border practices and the deliberate inaction of European states in the Central Mediterranean Sea. Throughout the year, our medical team treated survivors for the effects of the harsh conditions at sea, such as hypothermia, dehydration, and fuel burns, which occur when petrol mixes with sea water and comes into contact with the skin. The team also treated people for the physical and psychological consequences of the extreme violence they had experienced, including wounds, physical disabilities, psychological conditions, and sexually transmitted infections.  

The impact of the punitive Italian laws and practices on humanitarian activities at sea was to dramatically reduce the number of people the Geo Barents was able to rescue in 2024, as the ship was blocked in port for almost four months. As a result, MSF was forced to suspend search and rescue operations in December. However, we are committed to returning to the Central Mediterranean Sea as soon as possible. 
 

[1]  IOM - https://missingmigrants.iom.int/region/mediterranean