Refugees and irregular migrants are pouring into Europe by land, air and sea at the highest levels since 2016, when the war in Syria triggered a refugee crisis.
The latest surge in illegal migration has prompted interior ministers across Europe to vow to finally hammer out a unified policy on migration, which has long been Europe’s Achilles’ heel.
Nearly 18,000 migrants have arrived in Italy by sea alone since Jan. 1 — a figure three times higher than the same period last year, according to the Italian Interior Ministry — and the number of water crossings toward the U.K. in January and February exceeded 5,600, up 82% from last year, according to Frontex, the border and coast guard agency of the European Union.
Frontex data shows that some 330,000 illegal crossings into Europe were detected in 2022, over land routes from the Balkans and via the Mediterranean and the English Channel. That number is 64% higher than in 2021. The rise in migrants traveling to Europe by boat has been accompanied by dramatic reports of deaths at sea. Less than three weeks ago, 79 migrants reportedly drowned when a boat broke apart off the coast of Italy.
“Last year, [European] countries faced unprecedented challenges at their external borders,” a spokesperson for Frontex told Yahoo News. “The steadily increasing number of irregular crossings demonstrates the need for strong and effective European Border and Coast Guard.”