A total of 155,090 people have entered Europe irregularly between January 1 and July 31, 2022, as reported by the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex), who has also warned that this figure represents a 86% increase compared to the numbers that were handled in the same period last year. With these data, irregular immigration is growing at the highest rate since 2016.
In this regard, Frontex has pointed out that, only in the month of July, EU member states recorded 34,570 irregular arrivals on its borders, 63% more than in the same month of 2021.
Balkans, the busiest route
The Western Balkans remain the most active migratory route towards the Union with 14,866 detections in July, almost three times more than last year.
[Así es la vida en la isla que ha visto morir a 20.000 inmigrantes]
In fact, this route represents half of all detections in this matter, with 70,770 illegal entries. That is almost three times the total for the same period last year. The main nationalities on this route included immigrants from Syria, Afghanistan and Turkey.
On the other hand, and although it is not the most numerous route, Frontex has warned that pressure is “very high” in the central Mediterranean with “daily arrivals” that, as they have explained, “put pressure on reception capacities in Italy”.
In this case, in the first seven months of 2022, 42,549 irregular arrivals, 44% more than in the same period in 2021. In July alone, the number of people who entered the EU irregularly reached 14,800, which is 60% more than a year earlier.
On this route, the organization has explained that, although Tunisians (30%) were the main nationality registered on this route in July, in the general data for the year it is Egyptians who used it the most, mainly from Libya.
As for the Mediterranean, Western, 6,434 irregular entries were detected, 25% less That the last year. In this sense, they have explained that “criminal smuggling networks tried to take advantage of calm weather conditions to organize simultaneous outings on jet skis.” “Most of the migrants detected on this route They came from MoroccoFrontex has pointed out.
Similarly, experts have highlighted that the number of irregular migrants seeking to cross the Channel into the UK on small boats remained “high” with approximately 28,000 detections, including attempts and crossings, representing a 55% increase in the same period in 2021.
displaced by war
This year, the agency has highlighted the situation suffered by people who flee from Ukraine and enter the EU through border crossings and who, as it has pointed out, are not part of the numbers of illegal entries detected.
Still, he has indicated that they have been 7.7 million Ukrainian citizens who have fled from his country to the EU since the beginning of the war (last February). “At the same time, a significant number of Ukrainian citizens have returned to their country,” Frontex said.
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