GENEVA, 26 Feb. - (ANA) - At least 606 migrants have been reported dead or missing in the Mediterranean Sea since the start of 2026, the UN migration agency said on Monday.

 

"This marks the deadliest start to a year in the Mediterranean since IOM began recording such data in 2014," the UN's International Organization for Migration said.

 

A spokesperson for the organisation added that at least 30 people were missing after a vessel capsized off Crete on Saturday as they headed for Greece in bad weather.

 

Greek authorities said four bodies -- three men and a woman -- had been recovered with four patrol boats still engaged in a search for possible survivors.

 

Four of the mainly Sudanese and Egyptian migrant passengers were minors.

 

A commercial vessel had been directed to rescue the ship off the Cretan port of Kaloi Limenes, the Greek authorities said on Saturday.

 

The IOM said their vessel had set sail from Tobruk in Libya some 170 nautical miles (310 kilometres) away on February 19, but capsized around 20 nautical miles off Kaloi Limenes.

 

The past year has seen a steady flow of migrants setting off from Libya in a perilous attempt to reach Crete, which is part of EU member Greece.

 

The IOM called for increased regional cooperation and strengthened search and rescue operations in the central Mediterranean in the face of exploitation by human traffickers.

 

The United Nations agency also highlighted the need for "safe and regular" migration pathways to reduce risks to lives.   - (ANA) -

 

AB/ANA/26 February 2026 - - -