The International Organization for Migration has found the U.S.-Mexico border to be the world’s deadliest land migration route.

Paul Dillon: “The International Organization for Migration documented the deaths and disappearances of 686 migrants on the U.S.-Mexico border in 2022, making it the deadliest land route for migrants worldwide last year. The figure represents nearly half of the 1,457 migrant deaths and disappearances recorded throughout the Americas last year, the deadliest on record since the Missing Migrants Project began in 2014.”

The U.N. agency said the true toll is likely to be much higher. Half of the recorded deaths near the border are linked to the Sonoran and Chihuahuan Deserts. The IOM called on governments to urgently “create regular legal migration pathways” to prevent further unnecessary tragedy.