Over 3,000 migrants died attempting sea crossings to Spain in 2025, report says
The organization said 3,090 migrants drowned between January and December 15, including 192 women and 437 children. The victims originated from 30 countries, mainly in West and North Africa, as well as Pakistan, Syria, Yemen, Sudan, Iraq and Egypt.
Although the death toll represents a decline compared with the previous year, activists warned that the decrease does not indicate safer migration routes. Instead, they said stricter border controls are forcing migrants to take longer and more dangerous journeys.
The report identified the Atlantic route from North Africa to Spain’s Canary Islands as the deadliest, accounting for 1,906 deaths. Crossings on this route can take up to 12 days at sea. Another 1,037 deaths were recorded on the route from Algeria to the Balearic Islands, which has seen a rise in attempted crossings.
Caminando Fronteras also noted the emergence of a new migration route from Guinea to the Canary Islands, highlighting what it described as growing risks for those attempting to reach Spain by sea.
Beyond Spain, the report criticized what it called a global hardening of migration policies in 2025, with particular attention on the United States. It said US-led deportation measures had reshaped global migration patterns by promoting the outsourcing of expulsions to third countries, sometimes resulting in migrants being held in prisons, legal uncertainty, or overseas military facilities.
The organization said similar approaches were reflected in policies elsewhere, including the UK’s now-halted plan to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda and Italy’s establishment of detention centers in Albania.
According to the report, these developments are contributing to what it described as a transnational system that manages migration through institutional pressure and the erosion of basic protections.
