Nasenet has not seen her son Yafet in eight years. She left him in Sudan when she made the dangerous voyage across the Mediterranean Sea to Europe. Now she needs Yafet's father's permission to bring him to Germany. But his father, Biniam, is lost at sea.

Thousands have lost loved ones in the Mediterranean. Survivors suffer nightmares, panic attacks and depression.

Since 2014, over two million have tried to reach Europe by boat. At least 25,000 have drowned, making it the world's deadliest migration route.¹ Migrants mostly come from North Africa and the Middle East, escaping war, persecutionIll treatment and oppression, especially due to a person's beliefs or race, gender, religion, sexual orientation or other factors. , poverty and famine.

Sometimes the crisis makes news. Like 3 October 2013, when 366 drowned migrants were found in a wrecked boat off the Italian coast. "For the first time," says activist Tareke Brhane, "the sea gave us back the bodies." One of them may have been Yafet's father.

The UN calls it an "overlooked tragedy" which is getting worse. Campaigners say Europe needs to do more to help migrants.

Not everyone agrees. Some argue that they know the risks when they travel. Rescuing migrants encourages more to come. And money spent looking for bodies could be spent protecting borders.

In elections last year, Italy elected the far-right nationalistA person who believes strongly that their country is better than all others. Giorgia Meloni under the slogan "Stop landings". In Greece, 24 volunteers who rescued refugees at sea are now on trial for human trafficking.

Others say Europe must prevent deaths and find bodies lost at sea. "Knowing whether your son is dead or not is a fundamental right," argues expert Cristina Cattaneo. She helps migrants identify missing relatives.

Cattaneo wants safe routes to allow people to travel safely to Europe. "There shouldn't be all these dead people," she says. Campaigners say the EUEuropean Union. An economic and political union of 27 countries. contributes to the death toll by preventing rescue attempts.

The Italian politician Luigi Di Maio calls sea rescue missions a "migrant taxi service" that helps people smugglers. But researcher Laura Schmeer says the risk of death has risen to record levels since Italy stopped rescue missions.

And as more risk their lives to get to Europe, Nasenet's story may become even more common.

Yes: Mediterranean migrants are being treated unequally. Last year, millions of Ukrainian refugees were allowed safely into the EU. Europe could end this tragedy tomorrow by opening humanitarian corridors.

No: There is no easy solution. Human traffickers exploit people's desire to reach Europe. It will be impossible to prevent more deaths as migrant numbers rise. It is a tragedy, but not Europe's fault.

Or... This shocking statistic is part of a much bigger scandal. Climate change will force millions to migrate. Faced with a global crisis, we may need to rethink national borders entirely.