UNICEF Calls for Urgent Focus on Migrant Children's Safety

The UN children's fund has urged governments to prioritize the safety of migrant children after a recent shipwreck raised the death toll in the Mediterranean. UNICEF emphasized the need for safe pathways, coordinated rescue operations, and access to asylum services to protect vulnerable migrant children.

The UN children's fund has released an urgent appeal to global governments in light of the recent Mediterranean tragedy that left approximately 20 individuals missing. UNICEF is advocating for the prioritization of migrant children's safety after the shipwreck incident compounded an already devastating annual death toll.

The heart-wrenching survivor accounts include an 8-year-old girl who lost her mother in the disaster near Lampedusa, Italy. This was not the first such incident; an 11-year-old girl last month survived a similar calamity off the same island's coast, believed to be the sole survivor from a boat originating from Tunisia.

UNICEF's call to action demands honoring international refugee obligations, ensuring legal protection paths, and enhancing coordinated rescue efforts. Underlining such necessity, the Mediterranean remains a dangerous passage, with Italy's policies aimed at reducing arrivals amid growing migration crises.

(With inputs from agencies.)