Eighteen migrants were tragically killed when a bus in Mexico overturned.

Date: 07/10/2023

Eighteen migrants were tragically killed when a bus in Mexico overturned.

A bus transporting migrants overturns on the Oaxaca-Puebla highway in southern Mexico
Photographs by Royters

Early Friday morning, a tragic incident occurred on the Oaxaca-Puebla highway in southern Mexico, where a bus carrying migrants overturned at the US-Mexico border, resulting in the loss of at least 18 lives and injuring 27 individuals. The prosecutor's office in Oaxaca state, Mexico, has confirmed that three of the deceased were minors, all residents of Venezuela and Haiti. The injured have been transported to hospitals, and state authorities have released images of the damaged bus. The national immigration agency of Mexico has reported that at least 55 foreigners were on board the bus, including Peruvian nationals.

This route is frequently used by thousands of would-be immigrants from various countries who travel in buses, trailers, and freight trains in an attempt to cross the US-Mexico border illegally. They are often at risk of kidnapping, extortion by border officials, and even fatal accidents. According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), since 2014, more than 8,200 migrants have been killed or disappeared in the Americas, with most of these accidents occurring while attempting to enter the United States through Mexico. The US-Mexico border is considered the world's most dangerous land migration route, with 686 migrants dying or going missing on this route last year alone, as per the IOM. Regrettably, this is not the first such incident, as similar accidents have occurred in the past, resulting in the loss of many lives. The government of Mexico has acknowledged that its territory is being used for illegal immigration, with more than 189,000 migrants being detained last September, most of whom are citizens from Central and South American countries.