More than 3,000 migrants will die trying to reach Spain in 2025, says NGO

A Spanish soldier gives orders to immigrants who swam to the territory of Ceuta, a Spanish enclave in Morocco, in 2021. Jon Nazca/Reuters More than 3,000 migrants lost their lives trying to reach Spain in 2025, according to a report published this Monday (29) by the NGO “Caminando Fronteras”, a sharp drop compared to 2024 due to the reduction in crossing attempts. Most of the 3,090 deaths recorded as of December 15 occurred on the Atlantic route from Africa to the Spanish archipelago of the Canary Islands, considered one of the most dangerous in the world, according to the organization that defends the rights of migrants. The “Caminando Fronteras” report, compiled from distress calls from migrants themselves, reports from family members and official rescue statistics, confirms the trend indicated by the most recent government data. According to the Ministry of the Interior, Spain received 35,935 irregular migrants between January 1 and December 15 this year, a drop of 40.4% compared to the same period last year (60,311). Almost half of these arrivals occurred via the Atlantic route to the Canary Islands. Despite a “significant decline” in the number of arrivals to the archipelago, a “new, more distant and dangerous migratory route has been opened”, with departures from Guinea-Conakry, the organization noted. Among those who died in migration tragedies this year, “Caminando Fronteras” includes 192 women and 437 children. The NGO also highlights the increase in irregular migration between Algeria and the tourist islands of Ibiza and Formentera, in the Spanish Mediterranean.

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