EU Border Agency Urged to Enhance Aerial Surveillance to Prevent Mediterranean Deaths

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called on Frontex, the EU’s border agency, to deploy aerial surveillance to prevent migrant deaths in the Mediterranean, where over 31,700 people have died or gone missing in the past decade, Arab News reported. The appeal followed a meeting with Frontex’s executive director and a petition signed by 18,000 people demanding urgent action. HRW proposed that Frontex share real-time data with NGO rescue vessels, issue emergency alerts, and adopt a “broad interpretation of distress” to proactively identify at-risk boats.

The agency’s budget has surged from €142 million (2015) to €922 million (2024), but HRW stressed reforms must prioritize human rights and accountability. Critics also highlighted Frontex’s past intelligence-sharing with Libyan authorities, which led to migrant abuses. With warmer weather likely increasing crossings, HRW urged immediate measures to avert further tragedies, stating: “No one should be left to die at sea.”