Criminology and Psychology

The number of migrants making the hazardous journey across the Gulf of Aden to Yemen has spiked this year, but so too has the number of deaths, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported today. In the first two months of this year, 182 boats carrying 8,713 people arrived in Yemen, with at least 113 people perishing during the voyage and over 200 missing and presumed dead, UNHCR spokesperson Ron Redmond told reporters in Geneva.Two dozen boats with 2,946 people crossed the Gulf of Aden in the first two months of 2007, with 139 people losing their lives and 19 having gone missing.The surge in crossings this year is partly a result of the use of new smuggling routes, with smugglers having started bringing people across the Red Sea from Djibouti, as well as the more traditional route from Somalia.Although some routes are new, the smugglers' tactics have not changed, with people paying an average of between $130 and $150 to travel on small, fast boats, while thos...