- There have been 1,288 registered deaths so far this year in the Mediterranean, including in a number of recent tragedies.
- A journalist has recorded footage of Libyan government-backed militiamen actively participating in people smuggling in the Mediterranean.
- The head of the Spanish Navy has issued a clear reminder about seafarers’ duties to people in distress.
- An accident in the Aegean has left five people dead and another severely wounded.
- A new investigation has accused French security forces of contributing to multiple deaths during boat interceptions off Mayotte.
There have been several tragedies in the Mediterranean in recent weeks. On 13 September, a boat carrying 74 people, mostly from Sudan, capsized off the coast of Tobruk. According to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), there were only 13 survivors. One day later (14 September), the International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported that at least 50 people had died when a vessel carrying 75 Sudanese nationals caught fire near the Libyan coast. Two days after that (16 September), UNHCR reported that 11 Sudanese people had drowned in the Mediterranean. Also on 16 September, the search and rescue (SAR) NGO Sea-Watch reported that a woman had died and another was missing after a boat sank 83km from Lampedusa. On 18 September, the NGO Refugees in Tunisia reported that 39 people, including several Cameroonians, had died after a boat capsized off the coast of Tunisia. According to the IOM’s Missing Migrants Project, there were at least 1,288 deaths in the Mediterranean between 1 January and 13 September 2025.
A journalist has filmed Libyan militiamen actively participating in people smuggling in the Mediterranean on two separate occasions. The journalist, who works for the Italian Repubblica newspaper, made the first recording on 18 August whilst accompanying volunteers from the Mediterranea Saving Humans NGO on a rescue mission. The footage shows men in balaclavas and uniforms bearing the insignia of the 80th Special Operations Battalion of the 111th Brigade, a militia commanded by Libyan Undersecretary of Defence Abdul Salam Al-Zoub, operating from Libyan patrol boats. A second set of recordings, filmed two days later, shows Iraqi Kurdish people in the sea, having been forced off a boat that resembles the one seen on 18 August. Some of the people who were rescued by Mediterranea Saving Humans testified that they had been detained in a Libyan detention centre only hours earlier before being thrown overboard. They added that four other people who had refused the militia’s orders had been killed.
The head of the Spanish Navy has issued a clear reminder about seafarers’ duties to people in distress. Responding to a question from the former leader of the far-right Vox party, Javier Ortega Smith, about the need for an increased naval presence in the Strait of Gibraltar and off the Canary Islands and the enclaves of Ceuta and Melila to “curb illegal immigration”, Admiral Antonio Piñeiro stated that the Navy’s main mission in the area was to assist, save and rescue people in danger. “Let no one think that the Navy is going to be fighting illegal immigration at sea,” he said, adding: “[The armed forces] can identify the vessels transporting these people in order to proceed with their arrest and bring them to justice so they can be tried”.
An accident in the Aegean has left five people dead and another severely wounded. The incident occurred on 7 September when a boat carrying 34 people and a trafficker collided with a Turkish coastguard vessel off the northwest coast of Türkiye. According to a statement from the Balıkesir governorate, the boat was travelling at high speed as the coastguard vessel approached off Ayvalik district’s Badavut coast. In addition to the six casualties, another person remains missing.
A new investigation has revealed the apparent involvement of French security forces in the deaths of people attempting to reach Mayotte. The year-long inquiry, led by Lighthouse Reports in co-operation with several prominent media organisations, including the Monde newspaper, “proves for the first time that the French police are responsible for the deaths or disappearances of at least 24 people – including pregnant women and children – during violent interceptions at sea off the coast of Mayotte” between 2007 and 2025. Based on interviews, testimonies, data analysis and official statistics, the investigating organisations have reported the existence of a “consistent pattern”. According to the report’s authors, “While authorities publicly frame operations as rescue missions, evidence from witnesses, documents and insiders show that dangerous interception practices are commonplace”.
Related articles
- MEDITERRANEAN: Another tragedy in the Central Mediterranean ― NGO evacuates people from ship after EU member state authorities refuse to intervene ― 9,000 people have reportedly left Cyprus in 2025 ― Greek parliament passes ‘draconian’ asylum legislation ― New legal challenge to Greek asylum suspension ― Greek government plans to tighten rules on NGOs ― NGO ship detained after defying Italian Ministry of the Interior port order (September 2025)
- ATLANTIC ROUTE and SPAIN: Reception centres in Ceuta ‘overwhelmed’ ― NGO accuses Mauritanian authorities of rights violations ― First transfer of unaccompanied minors from Canary Islands ― Canary Islands government repeats request for additional Frontex support (August 2025)