The document summarizes the European migrant crisis that began in 2013, when large numbers of migrants and asylum seekers arrived in Europe from Africa and the Middle East. It discusses factors driving migration like conflicts, poverty, and climate change. Most migrants came from Muslim-majority countries in the Middle East and Africa. The crisis strained EU systems like Schengen and Dublin, and member states disagreed on how to handle and share responsibility for asylum applications.
The document summarizes the European migrant crisis that began in 2013, when large numbers of migrants and asylum seekers arrived in Europe from Africa and the Middle East. It discusses factors driving migration like conflicts, poverty, and climate change. Most migrants came from Muslim-majority countries in the Middle East and Africa. The crisis strained EU systems like Schengen and Dublin, and member states disagreed on how to handle and share responsibility for asylum applications.
The document summarizes the European migrant crisis that began in 2013, when large numbers of migrants and asylum seekers arrived in Europe from Africa and the Middle East. It discusses factors driving migration like conflicts, poverty, and climate change. Most migrants came from Muslim-majority countries in the Middle East and Africa. The crisis strained EU systems like Schengen and Dublin, and member states disagreed on how to handle and share responsibility for asylum applications.
The document summarizes the European migrant crisis that began in 2013, when large numbers of migrants and asylum seekers arrived in Europe from Africa and the Middle East. It discusses factors driving migration like conflicts, poverty, and climate change. Most migrants came from Muslim-majority countries in the Middle East and Africa. The crisis strained EU systems like Schengen and Dublin, and member states disagreed on how to handle and share responsibility for asylum applications.
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• THE EUROPEAN MIGRANT CRISIS[N OR REFUGEE CRISIS[N IS A TERM
GIVEN TO A PERIOD BEGINNING IN 2013[CITATION NEEDED][11] WHEN
RISING NUMBERS OF PEOPLE ARRIVED IN THE EUROPEAN UNION (EU) FROM ACROSS THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA OR OVERLAND THROUGH SOUTHEAST EUROPE. IT IS PART OF A PATTERN OF INCREASED IMMIGRATION TO EUROPE FROM OTHER CONTINENTS WHICH BEGAN IN THE MID-20TH CENTURY AND WHICH HAS ENCOUNTERED RESISTANCE IN MANY EUROPEAN COUNTRIES • IMMIGRANTS FROM OUTSIDE EUROPE INCLUDE ASYLUM SEEKERS AND ECONOMIC MIGRANTS.[13] THE TERM "IMMIGRANT" IS USED BY THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION TO DESCRIBE A PERSON FROM A NON-EU COUNTRY ESTABLISHING HIS OR HER USUAL RESIDENCE IN THE TERRITORY OF AN EU COUNTRY FOR A PERIOD THAT IS, OR IS EXPECTED TO BE, AT LEAST TWELVE MONTHS. MOST OF THE MIGRANTS CAME FROM MUSLIM- MAJORITY COUNTRIES IN REGIONS SOUTH AND EAST OF EUROPE, INCLUDING THE GREATER MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA.[ • AMONG OTHER FACTORS, CLIMATE CHANGE IS CONSIDERED A DRIVING FORCE FOR LARGE-SCALE MIGRATION TO EUROPE.[17][18][19] THE LONG-TERM EFFECTS OF EUROPEAN COLONIALISM, INCLUDING WIDESPREAD POVERTY AND CORRUPTION, ARE ALSO FACTORS.[20] IN RARE CASES, IMMIGRATION HAS BEEN A COVER FOR ISLAMIC STATE MILITANTS DISGUISED AS REFUGEES OR MIGRANTS.[21][22] BY RELIGIOUS AFFILIATION, THE MAJORITY OF ENTRANTS WERE MUSLIM (USUALLY SUNNI MUSLIM), WITH A SMALL COMPONENT OF NON-MUSLIM MINORITIES (INCLUDING YAZIDIS, ASSYRIANS AND MANDEANS). ACCORDING TO THE UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES, THE TOP THREE NATIONALITIES OF ENTRANTS OF THE OVER ONE MILLION MEDITERRANEAN SEA ARRIVALS BETWEEN JANUARY 2015 AND MARCH 2016 WERE SYRIAN (46.7%), AFGHAN (20.9%) AND IRAQI (9.4%).[23] • OF THE MIGRANTS ARRIVING IN EUROPE BY SEA IN 2015, 58% WERE MALES OVER 18 YEARS OF AGE (77% OF ADULTS), 17% WERE FEMALES OVER 18 (22% OF ADULTS) AND THE REMAINING 25% WERE UNDER 18.[24] THE NUMBER OF DEATHS AT SEA ROSE TO RECORD LEVELS IN APRIL 2015, WHEN FIVE BOATS CARRYING ALMOST 2,000 MIGRANTS TO EUROPE SANK IN THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA, WITH A COMBINED DEATH TOLL ESTIMATED AT MORE THAN 1,200 PEOPLE.[25] THE SHIPWRECKS TOOK PLACE IN A CONTEXT OF ONGOING CONFLICTS AND REFUGEE CRISES IN SEVERAL ASIAN AND AFRICAN COUNTRIES, WHICH INCREASED THE TOTAL NUMBER OF FORCIBLY DISPLACED PEOPLE WORLDWIDE AT THE END OF 2014 TO ALMOST 60 MILLION, THE HIGHEST LEVEL SINCE WORLD WAR II. • THOUGH THE MIGRANT CRISIS IS MOSTLY DISCUSSED IN EUROPE, THE TOP TEN COUNTRIES WITH THE MOST REFUGEES ARE MIDDLE EASTERN AND AFRICAN COUNTRIES. JORDAN, TURKEY, AND PAKISTAN ARE THE TOP THREE BIGGEST MIGRANT DESTINATIONS, WHILE LEBANON, IRAN, ETHIOPIA, KENYA, UGANDA, THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO, AND CHAD ARE THE REST OF THE COUNTRIES IN THE TOP 10 OF THE LIST. SIX OUT OF THE TOP TEN COUNTRIES WITH THE MOST REFUGEES ARE MUSLIM-MAJORITY COUNTRIES. OPERATION TRITON: IRISH NAVAL SERVICE PERSONNEL FROM THE LÉ EITHNE RESCUING MIGRANTS, 15 JUNE 2015 BACKGROUND • BETWEEN 2010 AND 2013, AROUND 1.4 MILLION NON-EU NATIONALS, EXCLUDING ASYLUM SEEKERS AND REFUGEES ARRIVED IN THE EU EACH YEAR, WITH A SLIGHT DECREASE AFTER 2010.[29] • AMID AN UPSURGE IN THE NUMBER OF SEA ARRIVALS IN ITALY FROM LIBYA IN 2014, SEVERAL EUROPEAN UNION GOVERNMENTS REFUSED TO FUND THE ITALIAN-RUN RESCUE OPTION OPERATION MARE NOSTRUM, WHICH WAS REPLACED BY FRONTEX'S OPERATION TRITON IN NOVEMBER 2014. IN THE FIRST SIX MONTHS OF 2015, GREECE OVERTOOK ITALY IN THE NUMBER OF ARRIVALS, BECOMING IN THE SUMMER OF 2015 THE STARTING POINT OF A FLOW OF REFUGEES AND MIGRANTS MOVING THROUGH BALKAN COUNTRIES TO NORTHERN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES, MAINLY GERMANY AND SWEDEN. • ALREADY IN 2010 THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION EXPLORED IN A STUDY THE FINANCIAL, POLITICAL AND LEGAL IMPLICATIONS OF A RELOCATION OF MIGRANTS IN EUROPE.[30] • SINCE APRIL 2015, THE EU HAS STRUGGLED TO COPE WITH THE CRISIS, INCREASING FUNDING FOR BORDER PATROL OPERATIONS ONLY IN THE MEDITERRANEAN, DEVISING PLANS TO FIGHT MIGRANT SMUGGLING THROUGH INITIATIVES SUCH AS THE MILITARY OPERATION SOPHIA AND PROPOSING A NEW QUOTA SYSTEM BOTH TO RELOCATE ASYLUM SEEKERS AMONG EU STATES FOR PROCESSING OF REFUGEE CLAIMS TO ALLEVIATE THE BURDEN ON COUNTRIES ON THE OUTER BORDERS OF THE UNION AND TO RESETTLE ASYLUM SEEKERS WHO HAVE BEEN DETERMINED TO BE GENUINE REFUGEES. INDIVIDUAL COUNTRIES HAVE AT TIMES RE-INTRODUCED BORDER CONTROLS WITHIN THE SCHENGEN AREA AND RIFTS HAVE EMERGED BETWEEN COUNTRIES WILLING TO ALLOW ENTRY OF ASYLUM SEEKERS FOR PROCESSING OF REFUGEE CLAIMS AND OTHER COUNTRIES TRYING TO DISCOURAGE THEIR ENTRY. • ACCORDING TO EUROSTAT, EU MEMBER STATES RECEIVED OVER 1.2 MILLION FIRST-TIME ASYLUM APPLICATIONS IN 2015, MORE THAN DOUBLE THAT OF THE PREVIOUS YEAR. FOUR STATES (GERMANY, HUNGARY, SWEDEN AND AUSTRIA) RECEIVED AROUND TWO-THIRDS OF THE EU'S ASYLUM APPLICATIONS IN 2015, WITH HUNGARY, SWEDEN AND AUSTRIA BEING THE TOP RECIPIENTS OF ASYLUM APPLICATIONS PER CAPITA.[31] MORE THAN 1 MILLION MIGRANTS CROSSED THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA IN 2015, SHARPLY DROPPING TO 364,000 IN 2016.[32] NUMBERS OF ARRIVING MIGRANTS FELL AGAIN IN 2017.[ SCHENGEN AREA AND DUBLIN REGULATION • IN THE SCHENGEN AGREEMENT OF 14 JUNE 1985, 26 EUROPEAN COUNTRIES (22 OF THE 28 EUROPEAN UNION MEMBER STATES, PLUS FOUR EUROPEAN FREE TRADE ASSOCIATION STATES) JOINED TOGETHER TO FORM AN AREA WHERE BORDER CHECKS ON INTERNAL SCHENGEN BORDERS (I.E. BETWEEN MEMBER STATES) ARE ABOLISHED AND INSTEAD CHECKS ARE RESTRICTED TO THE EXTERNAL SCHENGEN BORDERS AND COUNTRIES WITH EXTERNAL BORDERS ARE OBLIGATED TO ENFORCE BORDER CONTROL REGULATIONS. COUNTRIES MAY REINSTATE INTERNAL BORDER CONTROLS FOR A MAXIMUM OF TWO MONTHS FOR "PUBLIC POLICY OR NATIONAL SECURITY" REASONS • THE DUBLIN REGULATION DETERMINES THE EU MEMBER STATE RESPONSIBLE TO EXAMINE AN ASYLUM APPLICATION TO PREVENT ASYLUM APPLICANTS IN THE EU FROM "ASYLUM SHOPPING", WHERE APPLICANTS SEND THEIR APPLICATIONS FOR ASYLUM TO NUMEROUS EU MEMBER STATES TO GET THE BEST "DEAL" INSTEAD OF JUST HAVING "SAFETY COUNTRIES",[35] OR "ASYLUM ORBITING", WHERE NO MEMBER STATE TAKES RESPONSIBILITY FOR AN ASYLUM SEEKER. BY DEFAULT (WHEN NO FAMILY REASONS OR HUMANITARIAN GROUNDS ARE PRESENT), THE FIRST MEMBER STATE THAT AN ASYLUM SEEKER ENTERED AND IN WHICH THEY HAVE BEEN FINGERPRINTED IS RESPONSIBLE. IF THE ASYLUM SEEKER THEN MOVES TO ANOTHER MEMBER STATE, THEY CAN BE TRANSFERRED BACK TO THE MEMBER STATE THEY FIRST ENTERED. THIS HAS LED MANY TO CRITICISE THE DUBLIN RULES FOR PLACING TOO MUCH RESPONSIBILITY FOR ASYLUM SEEKERS ON MEMBER STATES ON THE EU'S EXTERNAL BORDERS (LIKE ITALY, GREECE AND HUNGARY), INSTEAD OF DEVISING A BURDEN-SHARING SYSTEM AMONG EU STATES • INJUNE 2016, THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND COUNCIL ADDRESSED "INHERENT WEAKNESSES" IN THE COMMON EUROPEAN ASYLUM SYSTEM AND PROPOSED REFORMS FOR THE DUBLIN REGULATION.[39] UNDER THE INITIAL DUBLIN REGULATION, RESPONSIBILITY WAS CONCENTRATED ON BORDER STATES THAT RECEIVED A LARGE INFLUX OF ASYLUM SEEKERS. A BRIEFING BY THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT EXPLAINED THAT THE DUBLIN AGREEMENT WAS ONLY DESIGNED TO ASSIGN RESPONSIBILITY, NOT EFFECTIVELY SHARE RESPONSIBILITY.[40] THE REFORMS WOULD ATTEMPT TO CREATE A BURDEN-SHARING SYSTEM THROUGH SEVERAL MECHANISMS. • THE PROPOSAL WOULD INTRODUCE A "CENTRALIZED AUTOMATED SYSTEM" TO RECORD THE NUMBER OF ASYLUM APPLICATIONS ACROSS THE EU, WITH "NATIONAL INTERFACES" WITHIN EACH OF THE MEMBER STATES.[41] IT WOULD ALSO PRESENT A "REFERENCE KEY" BASED ON A MEMBER STATE'S GDP AND POPULATION SIZE TO DETERMINE ITS ABSORPTION CAPACITY.[41] WHEN ABSORPTION CAPACITY IN A MEMBER STATE EXCEEDS 150% OF ITS REFERENCE SHARE, A "FAIRNESS MECHANISM" WOULD DISTRIBUTE THE EXCESS NUMBER OF ASYLUM SEEKERS ACROSS LESS CONGESTED MEMBER STATES.[41] IF A MEMBER STATE CHOOSES NOT TO ACCEPT THE ASYLUM SEEKERS, IT WOULD CONTRIBUTE €250,000 PER APPLICATION AS A "SOLIDARITY CONTRIBUTION".[41] THE REFORMS HAVE BEEN DISCUSSED IN EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT SINCE ITS PROPOSAL IN 2016, AND WAS INCLUDED IN A MEETING ON "THE THIRD REFORM OF THE COMMON EUROPEAN ASYLUM SYSTEM - UP FOR THE CHALLENGE" IN 2017.[42] THE SCHENGEN AREA EUROPEAN UNION MEMBERS LEGALLY OBLIGED TO JOIN SCHENGEN AT A FUTURE DATE
COUNTRIES WITH OPEN BORDERS
CARRIER'S RESPONSIBILITY • ARTICLE26 OF THE SCHENGEN CONVENTION[43] SAYS THAT CARRIERS WHICH TRANSPORT PEOPLE INTO THE SCHENGEN AREA SHALL IF THEY TRANSPORT PEOPLE WHO ARE REFUSED ENTRY INTO THE SCHENGEN AREA, BE RESPONSIBLE TO PAY FOR THE RETURN OF THE REFUSED PEOPLE, AND PAY PENALTIES.[44] FURTHER CLAUSES ON THIS TOPIC ARE FOUND IN EU DIRECTIVE 2001/51/EC.[45] THIS HAS HAD THE EFFECT THAT MIGRANTS WITHOUT A VISA ARE NOT ALLOWED ON AIRCRAFT, BOATS OR TRAINS GOING INTO THE SCHENGEN AREA, SO MIGRANTS WITHOUT A VISA HAVE RESORTED TO MIGRANT SMUGGLERS.[46] HUMANITARIAN VISAS ARE IN GENERAL NOT GIVEN TO REFUGEES WHO WANT TO APPLY FOR ASYLUM • THE LAWS ON MIGRANT SMUGGLING BAN HELPING MIGRANTS TO PASS ANY NATIONAL BORDER IF THE MIGRANTS ARE WITHOUT A VISA OR OTHER PERMISSION TO ENTER. THIS HAS CAUSED MANY AIRLINES TO CHECK FOR VISAS AND REFUSE PASSAGE TO MIGRANTS WITHOUT VISAS, INCLUDING THROUGH INTERNATIONAL FLIGHTS INSIDE THE SCHENGEN AREA. AFTER BEING REFUSED AIR PASSAGE, MANY MIGRANTS THEN ATTEMPT TO TRAVEL OVERLAND TO THEIR DESTINATION COUNTRY. ACCORDING TO A STUDY CARRIED OUT FOR THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, "PENALTIES FOR CARRIERS, WHO ASSUME SOME OF THE CONTROL DUTIES OF THE EUROPEAN POLICE SERVICES, EITHER BLOCK ASYLUM-SEEKERS FAR FROM EUROPE'S BORDERS OR FORCE THEM TO PAY MORE AND TAKE GREATER RISKS TO TRAVEL ILLEGALLY".[ STATISTICS ON THE EU'S FOREIGN-BORN POPULATION PRIOR TO 2015 • THE FOREIGN-BORN POPULATION RESIDING IN THE EU IN 2014 WAS 33 MILLION PEOPLE, OR 7% OF THE TOTAL POPULATION OF THE 28 EU COUNTRIES (ABOVE 500 MILLION PEOPLE). BY COMPARISON, THE FOREIGN-BORN POPULATION IS 7.7% IN RUSSIA,[52] 13% IN THE UNITED STATES, 20% IN CANADA, 27% IN AUSTRALIA AND 1.63% OF THE TOTAL POPULATION IN JAPAN.[53] BETWEEN 2010 AND 2013, AROUND 1.4 MILLION NON- EU NATIONALS, EXCLUDING ASYLUM SEEKERS AND REFUGEES, IMMIGRATED INTO THE EU EACH YEAR USING REGULAR MEANS, WITH A SLIGHT DECREASE SINCE 2010 • PRIOR TO 2014, THE NUMBER OF ASYLUM APPLICATIONS IN THE EU PEAKED IN 1992 (672,000), 2001 (424,000) AND 2013 (431,000). IN 2014 IT REACHED 626,000.[54] ACCORDING TO THE UNHCR, THE EU COUNTRIES WITH THE BIGGEST NUMBERS OF RECOGNISED REFUGEES AT THE END OF 2014 WERE FRANCE (252,264), GERMANY (216,973), SWEDEN (142,207) AND THE UNITED KINGDOM (117,161). NO EUROPEAN STATE WAS AMONG THE TOP TEN REFUGEE-HOSTING COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD.[26] • PRIOR TO 2014, THE NUMBER OF ILLEGAL BORDER CROSSINGS DETECTED BY FRONTEX AT THE EXTERNAL BORDERS OF THE EU PEAKED IN 2011, WITH 141,051 TOTAL (SEA AND LAND COMBINED) GLOBAL REFUGEE CRISIS • ACCORDING TO THE UNHCR, THE NUMBER OF FORCIBLY DISPLACED PEOPLE WORLDWIDE DURING THE REFUGEE CRISIS REACHED 59.5 MILLION AT THE END OF 2014, THE HIGHEST LEVEL SINCE WORLD WAR II,[57] WITH A 40% INCREASE TAKING PLACE SINCE 2011. OF THESE 59.5 MILLION, 19.5 MILLION WERE REFUGEES (14.4 MILLION UNDER UNHCR'S MANDATE, PLUS 5.1 MILLION PALESTINIAN REFUGEES UNDER UNRWA'S MANDATE), AND 1.8 MILLION WERE ASYLUM-SEEKERS. THE REST WERE PERSONS DISPLACED WITHIN THEIR OWN COUNTRIES (INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS). • 14.4 MILLION REFUGEES UNDER UNHCR'S MANDATE WERE AROUND 2.7 MILLION MORE THAN AT THE END OF 2013 (+23%), THE HIGHEST LEVEL SINCE 1995. AMONG THEM, SYRIAN REFUGEES BECAME THE LARGEST REFUGEE GROUP IN 2014 (3.9 MILLION, 1.55 MILLION MORE THAN THE PREVIOUS YEAR), OVERTAKING AFGHAN REFUGEES (2.6 MILLION), WHO HAD BEEN THE LARGEST REFUGEE GROUP FOR THREE DECADES. SIX OF THE TEN LARGEST COUNTRIES OF ORIGIN OF REFUGEES WERE AFRICAN: SOMALIA, SUDAN, SOUTH SUDAN, THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO, THE CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC AND ERITREA • DEVELOPING COUNTRIES HOSTED THE LARGEST SHARE OF REFUGEES (86% BY THE END OF 2014, THE HIGHEST FIGURE IN MORE THAN TWO DECADES); THE LEAST DEVELOPED COUNTRIES ALONE PROVIDED ASYLUM TO 25% OF REFUGEES WORLDWIDE.[26] EVEN THOUGH MOST SYRIAN REFUGEES WERE HOSTED BY NEIGHBOURING COUNTRIES SUCH AS TURKEY, LEBANON AND JORDAN, THE NUMBER OF ASYLUM APPLICATIONS LODGED BY SYRIAN REFUGEES IN EUROPE STEADILY INCREASED BETWEEN 2011 AND 2015, TOTALING 813,599 IN 37 EUROPEAN COUNTRIES (INCLUDING BOTH EU MEMBERS AND NON-MEMBERS) AS OF NOVEMBER 2015; 57% OF THEM APPLIED FOR ASYLUM IN GERMANY OR SERBIA.[59] THE LARGEST SINGLE RECIPIENT OF NEW ASYLUM SEEKERS WORLDWIDE IN 2014 WAS THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION, WITH 274,700 ASYLUM REQUESTS.[ BACKGROUND TO THE CRISIS IN GREECE AND ITALY • BETWEEN 2007 AND 2011, LARGE NUMBERS OF MIGRANTS FROM THE MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA CROSSED BETWEEN TURKEY AND GREECE, LEADING GREECE AND THE EUROPEAN BORDER PROTECTION AGENCY FRONTEX TO UPGRADE BORDER CONTROLS.[60] IN 2012, IMMIGRANT INFLUX INTO GREECE BY LAND DECREASED BY 95% AFTER THE CONSTRUCTION OF A FENCE ON THAT PART OF THE GREEK–TURKISH FRONTIER WHICH DOES NOT FOLLOW THE COURSE OF THE MARITSA RIVER.[61] IN 2015, BULGARIA FOLLOWED BY UPGRADING A BORDER FENCE TO PREVENT MIGRANT FLOWS THROUGH TURKEY. • IN 2008, BERLUSCONI'S GOVERNMENT IN ITALY AND GADDAFI'S GOVERNMENT IN LIBYA SIGNED A TREATY INCLUDING COOPERATION BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES IN ORDER TO STOP IRREGULAR MIGRATION FROM LIBYA TO ITALY. THIS LED TO A POLICY OF FORCIBLY RETURNING TO LIBYA BOAT MIGRANTS INTERCEPTED BY THE ITALIAN COAST GUARD AT SEA.[64] THE COOPERATION COLLAPSED FOLLOWING THE OUTBREAK OF THE LIBYAN CIVIL WAR IN 2011, AND IN 2012 THE EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS RULED THAT ITALY HAD VIOLATED THE EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS BY RETURNING MIGRANTS TO LIBYA, AS IT EXPOSED THE MIGRANTS TO THE RISK OF BEING SUBJECTED TO ILL-TREATMENT IN LIBYA AND VIOLATED THE PROHIBITION OF COLLECTIVE EXPULSIONS. • SINCE 2011, AND PARTICULARLY SINCE 2014, INSTABILITY AND THE SECOND CIVIL WAR IN LIBYA HAVE MADE DEPARTURES FROM THE NORTH-AFRICAN COUNTRY TO ITALY EASIER, WITH NO CENTRAL AUTHORITY CONTROLLING LIBYA'S PORTS AND DEALING WITH EUROPEAN COUNTRIES AND MIGRANT SMUGGLING NETWORKS FLOURISHING. THE WAR COULD ALSO HAVE FORCED TO LEAVE MANY AFRICAN IMMIGRANTS RESIDING IN LIBYA, WHICH USED TO BE ITSELF A DESTINATION COUNTRY FOR MIGRANTS LOOKING FOR BETTER JOBS.[66] THE 2013 LAMPEDUSA MIGRANT SHIPWRECK INVOLVED "MORE THAN 360" DEATHS, LEADING THE ITALIAN GOVERNMENT TO ESTABLISH OPERATION MARE NOSTRUM, A LARGE-SCALE NAVAL OPERATION THAT INVOLVED SEARCH AND RESCUE, WITH SOME MIGRANTS BROUGHT ABOARD A NAVAL AMPHIBIOUS ASSAULT SHIP • IN 2014, THE ITALIAN GOVERNMENT ENDED THE OPERATION, CALLING THE COSTS TOO LARGE FOR ONE EU STATE ALONE TO MANAGE; FRONTEX ASSUMED THE MAIN RESPONSIBILITY FOR SEARCH AND RESCUE OPERATIONS. THE FRONTEX OPERATION IS CALLED OPERATION TRITON.[68] THE ITALIAN GOVERNMENT HAD REQUESTED ADDITIONAL FUNDS FROM THE EU TO CONTINUE THE OPERATION BUT MEMBER STATES DID NOT OFFER THE REQUESTED SUPPORT.[69] THE UK GOVERNMENT CITED FEARS THAT THE OPERATION WAS ACTING AS "AN UNINTENDED 'PULL FACTOR', ENCOURAGING MORE MIGRANTS TO ATTEMPT THE DANGEROUS SEA CROSSING AND THEREBY LEADING TO MORE TRAGIC AND UNNECESSARY DEATHS".[70] THE OPERATION CONSISTED OF TWO SURVEILLANCE AIRCRAFT AND THREE SHIPS, WITH SEVEN TEAMS OF STAFF WHO GATHERED INTELLIGENCE AND CONDUCTED SCREENING/IDENTIFICATION PROCESSING. ITS MONTHLY BUDGET WAS ESTIMATED AT €2.9 MILLION.[68] • THE GREEK ISLANDS (KOS, LEROS, CHIOS, FOR EXAMPLE) SERVE AS MAIN ENTRY POINTS INTO EUROPE FOR SYRIAN REFUGEES. REFUGEE CRISIS • REFUGEES ARE PEOPLE FORCED TO FLEE THEIR COUNTRY OF ORIGIN BECAUSE OF PERSECUTION, WAR, OR VIOLENCE.[73] • ACCORDING TO THE UNHCR, THE NUMBER OF FORCIBLY DISPLACED PEOPLE WORLDWIDE REACHED 65,600,000 AT THE END OF 2016; THE HIGHEST LEVEL SINCE WORLD WAR II, WITH A 40% INCREASE TAKING PLACE SINCE 2011. OF THESE 65,600,000, 22.5 MILLION WERE REFUGEES (17.2 MILLION UNDER UNHCR'S MANDATE, PLUS 5.3 MILLION PALESTINIAN REFUGEES UNDER UNRWA'S MANDATE). 2.8 MILLION OF THE REFUGEES WERE ASYLUM SEEKERS. THE REST WERE PERSONS DISPLACED WITHIN THEIR OWN COUNTRIES (INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS). THE 17.2 MILLION REFUGEES UNDER UNHCR'S MANDATE WERE AROUND 2.9 MILLION MORE THAN AT THE END OF 2014, THE HIGHEST LEVEL SINCE 1992. AMONG THEM, SYRIAN REFUGEES BECAME THE LARGEST REFUGEE GROUP IN 2014 (3.9 MILLION, 1.55 MILLION MORE THAN THE PREVIOUS YEAR), OVERTAKING AFGHAN REFUGEES (2.6 MILLION), WHO HAD BEEN THE LARGEST REFUGEE GROUP FOR THREE DECADES • SIXOF THE TEN LARGEST COUNTRIES OF ORIGIN OF REFUGEES WERE AFRICAN: SOMALIA, SUDAN, SOUTH SUDAN, THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO, THE CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC AND ERITREA. DEVELOPING COUNTRIES HOSTED THE LARGEST SHARE OF REFUGEES (86% BY THE END OF 2014, THE HIGHEST FIGURE IN MORE THAN TWO DECADES); THE LEAST DEVELOPED COUNTRIES ALONE PROVIDED ASYLUM TO 25% OF REFUGEES WORLDWIDE. EVEN THOUGH MOST SYRIAN REFUGEES WERE HOSTED BY NEIGHBORING COUNTRIES SUCH AS TURKEY, LEBANON AND JORDAN, THE NUMBER OF ASYLUM APPLICATIONS LODGED BY SYRIAN REFUGEES IN EUROPE STEADILY INCREASED BETWEEN 2011–17. BY DECEMBER 2017, UNHCR HAD COUNTED OVER 1,000,000 ASYLUM APPLICATIONS IN 37 EUROPEAN COUNTRIES (INCLUDING BOTH EU MEMBERS AND NON-MEMBERS). • AS OF 2017, 55% OF REFUGEES WORLDWIDE CAME FROM THREE NATIONS: SOUTH SUDAN, AFGHANISTAN, AND SYRIA. OF ALL DISPLACED PEOPLES, 17% OF THEM ARE BEING HOSTED IN EUROPE. AS OF APRIL 2018, 15,481 REFUGEES HAVE SUCCESSFULLY ARRIVED TO THE SHORES OF EUROPE VIA SEA WITHIN THE FIRST FEW MONTHS OF THE YEAR ALONE. THERE WAS AN ESTIMATED 500 THAT HAVE DIED IN THIS YEAR ALONE. IN 2015, THERE WAS A TOTAL OF 1.02 MILLION ARRIVALS BY SEA. SINCE THEN, THE INFLUX HAS STEADILY DECREASED BUT IS ONGOING NONETHELESS SYRIA • THE GREATEST NUMBER OF REFUGEES FLEEING TO EUROPE ORIGINATE FROM SYRIA. THEIR MIGRATION STEMS FROM SEVERE SOCIO-POLITICAL OPPRESSION UNDER PRESIDENT BASHAR AL-ASSAD. CIVIL WAR ENSUED WITH CLASHES BETWEEN PRO AND ANTI-GOVERNMENT GROUPS. ANTI-GOVERNMENT FORCES WERE SUPPORTED BY EXTERNAL GOVERNMENTS (INCLUDING THE US, UK AND FRANCE[76]) IN AN EFFORT TO TOPPLE THE SYRIAN GOVERNMENT VIA CLASSIFIED PROGRAMS SUCH AS TIMBER SYCAMORE THAT EFFECTIVELY DELIVERED THOUSANDS OF TONS OF WEAPONRY TO REBEL GROUPS.[77][78][79][80][81][82][83][84] IN 2011, A GROUP OF SYRIANS DISPLAYED PRO-DEMOCRACY PROTESTS IN THE CITY OF DARAA. PRESIDENT ASSAD RESPONDED WITH FORCE AND CONSEQUENTLY, MORE PROTESTS WERE TRIGGERED NATIONWIDE AGAINST THE ASSAD REGIME. • BY JULY 2011, HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE WERE PROTESTING AGAINST PRESIDENT ASSAD. AN EARLY VIOLENT CRACKDOWN WAS IMPLEMENTED TO TRY TO MITIGATE THESE UPRISINGS—HOWEVER, THESE MEASURES WERE MET WITH MORE UNREST. BY MAY 2011, THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE HAD ALREADY FLED THE COUNTRY AND THE FIRST REFUGEE CAMPS OPENED IN TURKEY. IN MARCH 2012, THE UNHCR DECIDED TO APPOINT A REGIONAL REFUGEE COORDINATOR FOR SYRIAN REFUGEES— RECOGNISING THE GROWING CONCERNS SURROUNDING THE CRISIS. JUST A YEAR LATER, IN MARCH 2013, THE NUMBER OF SYRIAN REFUGEES REACHED 1,000,000. BY DECEMBER 2017, UNHCR COUNTED 1,000,000 ASYLUM APPLICATIONS FOR SYRIAN REFUGEES IN THE EUROPEAN UNION. AS OF MARCH 2018, UNHCR HAS COUNTED NEARLY 5.6 MILLION REGISTERED SYRIAN REFUGEES WORLDWIDE AFGHANISTAN • AFGHAN REFUGEES COMPRISE THE SECOND-LARGEST REFUGEE POPULATION IN THE WORLD.[86] ACCORDING TO THE UNHCR, THERE ARE ALMOST 2.5 MILLION REGISTERED REFUGEES FROM AFGHANISTAN. MOST OF THESE REFUGEES HAVE FLED THE REGION DUE TO WAR AND PERSECUTION. THE MAJORITY HAVE RESETTLED IN PAKISTAN AND IRAN, BUT IT IS BECOMING INCREASINGLY COMMON TO MIGRATE FURTHER WEST TO THE EUROPEAN UNION. AFGHANISTAN HAS FACED NEARLY 40 YEARS OF CONFLICT DATING BACK TO THE SOVIET INVASION IN 1979. • SINCE THEN, THE NATION HAS FACED FLUCTUATING LEVELS OF CIVIL WAR AMIDST UNENDING UNREST. THE INCREASE IN REFUGEE NUMBERS HAS BEEN CREDITED PRIMARILY TO THE TALIBAN PRESENCE WITHIN AFGHANISTAN. THEIR RETREAT IN 2001, LED TO NEARLY 6 MILLION AFGHAN REFUGEES RETURNING TO THEIR HOMELAND. HOWEVER, AFTER CIVIL UNREST AND FIGHTING ALONGSIDE THE TALIBAN'S RETURN, NEARLY 2.5 MILLION REFUGEES HAVE FLED AFGHANISTAN.[87] MOST AFGHAN REFUGEES, HOWEVER, SEEK REFUGE IN THE NEIGHBORING NATION OF PAKISTAN. INCREASING NUMBERS, THOUGH, HAVE COMMITTED TO THE STRENUOUS MIGRATION TO TURKEY AND THE EUROPEAN UNION. ECONOMIC ASYLUM • FOR LONG, ECONOMIC MIGRATION HAS BEEN A GLOBAL ISSUE. SUCH MIGRATION IS PURSUED TO IN ORDER TO SEEK LIVING CONDITIONS/STANDARDS AND JOB OPPORTUNITIES THAT DO NOT EXIST IN THE MIGRANT'S COUNTRY OF ORIGIN. THESE MIGRANTS ARE TERMED "MIGRANT WORKERS" BY THE UNITED NATIONS. ACCORDING TO THE OECD, OVER THE LAST TEN YEARS, MIGRANTS ACCOUNTED FOR OVER 70% OF THE INCREASE IN EUROPE'S WORKFORCE. THE OECD HAS REPORTED THAT SUCH IMMIGRATION IS ACTUALLY CRUCIAL TO THE GROWING LABOR MARKET—FILLING 15% OF THE ENTRIES INTO THE FASTEST GROWING OCCUPATIONS. OVERALL, THE OECD HAS FOUND THAT THE INFLOW OF MIGRANTS HAS NOT GREATLY DISRUPTED ANY NATION'S GDP. ISIL • IN 2016, ACCORDING TO THE ITALIAN DAILY NEWSPAPER LA STAMPA, OFFICIALS FROM EUROPOL CONDUCTED AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE TRAFFICKING OF FAKE DOCUMENTS FOR ISIL. THEY IDENTIFIED FAKE SYRIAN PASSPORTS IN THE REFUGEE CAMPS IN GREECE THAT WERE DESTINED TO SUPPOSED MEMBERS OF ISIL, IN ORDER TO AVOID GREEK GOVERNMENT CONTROLS AND MAKE THEIR WAY TO OTHER PARTS OF EUROPE. ALSO, THE CHIEF OF EUROPOL SAID THAT A NEW TASK FORCE OF 200 COUNTER- TERRORISM OFFICERS WOULD BE DEPLOYED TO THE GREEK ISLANDS ALONGSIDE GREEK BORDER GUARDS IN ORDER TO HELP GREECE STOP A "STRATEGIC" LEVEL CAMPAIGN BY ISIL TO INFILTRATE TERRORISTS INTO EUROPE. • IN FEBRUARY 2017, BRITISH NEWSPAPER THE GUARDIAN REPORTED THAT ISIL WAS PAYING THE SMUGGLERS FEES OF UP TO $2,000 USD TO RECRUIT PEOPLE FROM REFUGEE CAMPS IN JORDAN AND LEBANON CHILD MIGRANTS IN A DESPERATE ATTEMPT TO RADICALIZE CHILDREN FOR THE GROUP. THE REPORTS BY COUNTER-EXTREMISM THINKTANK QUILLIAM INDICATE THAT AN ESTIMATED 88,300 UNACCOMPANIED CHILDREN—WHO ARE REPORTED AS MISSING—WERE AT RISK OF RADICALIZATION BY ISIL STATISTICS • ACCORDING TO THE INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR MIGRATION (IOM), UP TO 3,072 PEOPLE DIED OR DISAPPEARED IN 2014 IN THE MEDITERRANEAN WHILE TRYING TO MIGRATE TO EUROPE.[91] OVERALL ESTIMATES ARE THAT OVER 22,000 MIGRANTS DIED BETWEEN 2000 AND 2014.[92][93] • IN 2014, 283,532 MIGRANTS IRREGULARLY ENTERED THE EUROPEAN UNION, MAINLY FOLLOWING THE CENTRAL MEDITERRANEAN, EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN AND WESTERN BALKAN ROUTES.[91][94][95] 220,194 MIGRANTS CROSSED EU SEA BORDERS IN THE CENTRAL, EASTERN AND WESTERN MEDITERRANEAN (A 266% INCREASE COMPARED TO 2013). HALF OF THEM HAD COME FROM SYRIA, ERITREA AND AFGHANISTAN • OF THOSE ARRIVING IN SOUTHERN EUROPE IN 2014, THE VAST MAJORITY (170,664, A 277% INCREASE COMPARED TO 2013) ARRIVED IN ITALY THROUGH LIBYA, WHEREAS A MINORITY (50,834, A 105% INCREASE) ARRIVED IN GREECE THROUGH TURKEY.[96] 62,000 APPLIED FOR ASYLUM IN ITALY, BUT MOST SYRIANS AND ERITREANS, WHO COMPRISED ALMOST HALF OF THE ARRIVALS IN ITALY IN 2014, DID NOT STOP IN ITALY, BUT CONTINUED THEIR JOURNEY TOWARDS NORTHERN EUROPE, GERMANY AND SWEDEN IN PARTICULAR 2015 • IN 2015, A SHIFT TOOK PLACE, WITH GREECE OVERTAKING ITALY AS THE PRIMARY POINT OF ARRIVAL AND SURPASSING IN THE FIRST SIX MONTHS OF 2015 THE NUMBERS FOR THE WHOLE OF 2014: 67,500 PEOPLE ARRIVED IN ITALY, MAINLY COMING FROM ERITREA (25%), NIGERIA (10%) AND SOMALIA (10%), WHEREAS 68,000 ARRIVED ON THE ISLANDS OF GREECE, MAINLY COMING FROM SYRIA (57%) AND AFGHANISTAN (22%).[98] IN TOTAL, 137,000 MIGRANTS CROSSED THE MEDITERRANEAN INTO EUROPE IN THE FIRST SIX MONTHS OF 2015 • AS OF 17 APRIL 2015, THE TOTAL NUMBER OF MIGRANTS REACHING THE ITALIAN COASTS WAS 21,191 SINCE 1 JANUARY 2015, WITH A DECREASE DURING THE MONTH OF MARCH DUE TO BAD WEATHER CONDITIONS, AND A SURGE SINCE 10 APRIL, BRINGING THE TOTAL NUMBER OF ARRIVALS IN LINE WITH THE NUMBER RECORDED IN THE SAME PERIOD IN 2014. HOWEVER, THE DEATH TOLL IN THE FIRST FOUR MONTHS OF 2014 WAS 96, COMPARED WITH 500 IN THE SAME PERIOD IN 2015; THIS NUMBER EXCLUDED THE VICTIMS OF THE SHIPWRECKS ON 13 AND 19 APRIL • IN EARLY AUGUST 2015, THE UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES SAID THAT 250,000 MIGRANTS HAD ARRIVED IN EUROPE BY SEA SO FAR IN 2015, 124,000 IN GREECE AND 98,000 IN ITALY.[104] ACCORDING TO FRONTEX, JULY SET A NEW RECORD FOR A SINGLE MONTH, WITH 107,500 MIGRANTS ESTIMATED TO HAVE ENTERED THE EU.[105] FRONTEX DETECTED 615,492 IRREGULAR ENTRIES INTO THE EU IN THE THIRD QUARTER OF 2015 AND 978,338 ENTRIES IN THE FOURTH QUARTER,[106] BRINGING THE TOTAL NUMBER OF DETECTIONS OF IRREGULAR ENTRIES AT EU SEA AND LAND EXTERNAL BORDERS IN 2015 TO 1.82 MILLION (872,938 IN GREECE, 764,038 IN HUNGARY AND CROATIA AND 153,946 IN ITALY), ASSOCIATED WITH AN ESTIMATED ONE MILLION INDIVIDUALS IRREGULARLY ENTERING THE EU (BECAUSE MOST MIGRANTS FOLLOWING THE WESTERN BALKAN ROUTE WERE DOUBLE-COUNTED WHEN ARRIVING IN GREECE AND THEN WHEN ENTERING THE EU FOR THE SECOND TIME THROUGH HUNGARY OR CROATIA). • ACCORDING TO IOM AND UNHCR ESTIMATES, AROUND ONE MILLION MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES ARRIVED IN EUROPE TILL 21 DECEMBER 2015, THREE TO FOUR TIMES MORE THAN IN 2014.[108] JUST 3% (34,215) CAME BY LAND TO BULGARIA AND GREECE; THE REST CAME BY SEA TO GREECE, ITALY, SPAIN, CYPRUS AND MALTA. THE VAST MAJORITY ARRIVED BY SEA IN GREECE (816,752); 150,317 ARRIVED BY SEA IN ITALY, WITH A SLIGHT DROP FROM 170,000 IN 2014. HALF OF THOSE CROSSING THE MEDITERRANEAN WERE FROM SYRIA, 20% WERE FROM AFGHANISTAN AND 7% FROM IRAQ. IOM ESTIMATED THAT A TOTAL OF 3,692 MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES LOST THEIR LIVES IN THE MEDITERRANEAN IN 2015 – OVER 400 MORE THAN IN 2014 – OF WHOM 2,889 IN THE CENTRAL MEDITERRANEAN AND 731 IN THE AEGEAN SEA. • IN JANUARY AND FEBRUARY 2016, OVER 123,000 MIGRANTS LANDED IN GREECE, COMPARED TO ABOUT 4,600 IN THE SAME PERIOD OF 2015.[112] IN MARCH, FOLLOWING THE CLOSING OF THE WESTERN BALKAN ROUTE BY NORTH MACEDONIA AND THE ENTRY INTO FORCE OF THE EU–TURKEY DEAL ON 20 MARCH, THE NUMBER OF MIGRANTS ARRIVING IN GREECE DROPPED TO 26,460, LESS THAN HALF THE FIGURE RECORDED IN FEBRUARY. SYRIANS, AFGHANS AND IRAQIS CONTINUED TO ACCOUNT FOR THE LARGEST SHARE OF THE MIGRANTS ARRIVING IN GREECE.[113] THIS DOWNWARD TREND CONTINUED IN APRIL, WHEN ONLY 2,700 MIGRANTS ARRIVED IN GREECE, DECREASING BY 90% COMPARED TO THE PREVIOUS MONTH • MEANWHILE, DUE TO IMPROVED WEATHER CONDITIONS, THE NUMBER OF MAINLY AFRICAN MIGRANTS CROSSING THE SEA TO ITALY DOUBLED BETWEEN FEBRUARY AND MARCH, REACHING NEARLY 9,600 IN MARCH 2016, COMPARED TO 2,283 IN MARCH 2015.[115][113] IN APRIL, ON THE CONTRARY, THE NUMBER OF MIGRANTS ARRIVING IN ITALY (8,370) DROPPED BY 13% COMPARED TO THE PREVIOUS MONTH AND BY 50% COMPARED TO THE SAME MONTH IN 2015; DESPITE THIS, ITALY EXCEEDED THE TOTALS FOR GREECE FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE JUNE 2015.[114] ON 16 APRIL, A SHIPWRECK OF A LARGE BOAT BETWEEN LIBYA AND ITALY WAS REPORTED, IN WHICH AS MANY AS 500 PEOPLE MAY HAVE DIED, IN ONE OF THE WORST DISASTERS SINCE APRIL 2015.[116] MORE THAN 66,000 MOSTLY AFRICAN MIGRANTS HAVE ARRIVED IN ITALY SINCE THE START OF 2016. • THE MASS INFLUX OF MIGRANTS INTO EUROPE WAS NOT SEEN FAVORABLY IN MANY EUROPEAN UNION COUNTRIES. MANY CITIZENS DISAPPROVED OF THE EU'S HANDLING OF THE MIGRANT CRISIS, WITH 94% OF GREEKS AND 88% OF SWEDES DISAPPROVING OF THE MEASURES TAKEN, AMONG OTHER COUNTRIES WITH SIMILAR DISAPPROVAL RATES.[118] THIS CONTRIBUTED TO THE CREATION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF THE EU–TURKEY REFUGEE AGREEMENT, WHICH WAS SIGNED IN MARCH 2016. FROM THAT POINT ON, THE NUMBERS OF REFUGEES ENTERING GREECE DECREASED. IN FEBRUARY 2016, THE LAST FULL MONTH BEFORE THE DEAL, 57,066 MIGRANTS ARRIVED IN GREECE VIA THE SEA; FROM THAT POINT ON, DISCOUNTING MARCH, THE HIGHEST NUMBER OF MIGRANTS REACHING GREECE VIA THE SEA WAS 3,650 • (INAPRIL).[119] WHILE THERE IS NO DIRECT CONNECTION TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE EU–TURKEY DEAL, THE NUMBER OF MIGRANTS ARRIVING IN ITALY IN THAT SAME TIME PERIOD HAS INCREASED. FROM MARCH 2016 TO OCTOBER 2016, 140,358 MIGRANTS HAVE ARRIVED IN ITALY VIA THE SEA, WHICH AVERAGES OUT TO ROUGHLY 20,051 MIGRANTS PER MONTH.[120] OVERALL THE NUMBER OF MIGRANTS ARRIVING INTO THE EU HAS DROPPED, BUT THE EU STILL IS CREATING AGENCIES AND PLANS TO MITIGATE THE CRISIS. IN ADDITION TO THE EU–TURKEY REFUGEE AGREEMENT, THE EUROPEAN BORDER AND COAST GUARD AGENCY WAS LAUNCHED ON 6 OCTOBER 2016 • DATA RELEASED BY THE INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION OF MIGRATION (IOM) FOR THE THIRD QUARTER OF 2017 RECORDED 146,287 TOTAL ARRIVALS TO EUROPE, OF WHICH 137,771 WERE BY SEA. THIS IS LESS THAN HALF THE TOTAL RECORDED BY THE END OF SEPTEMBER 2016. THE GREATEST DECREASE IN INFLUX WAS NOTED ON THE EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN ROUTE. DESPITE AN 86% DROP IN THE NUMBER OF MIGRANT AND REFUGEE ARRIVALS IN SEPTEMBER 2017 WHEN COMPARED TO SEPTEMBER 2016, GREECE HAS OBSERVED A STEADY INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF MIGRANTS FROM SEPTEMBER 2016 TILL DATE. FURTHER, WHILE ITALY ALSO NOTED LOWER NUMBER OF MIGRANT ARRIVAL IN 2017, THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT JUMP IN THE NUMBER OF MIGRANTS REACHING SPAIN, WITH OVER 16,000 HAVING ARRIVED IN THE COUNTRY. LIKE SPAIN, THE ISLAND-NATION OF CYPRUS REGISTERED APPROXIMATELY AN 8-FOLD INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF MIGRANTS ARRIVING LAST YEAR AND THIS YEAR.[1 • CLOSURE OF SEGMENTS OF CERTAIN HEAVY-TRAFFIC ROUTES SUCH AS THE CENTRAL AND EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE MARKED DECREASE IN THE NUMBER OF MIGRANTS FROM THE MIDDLE EAST IN 2017. HOWEVER, THE WESTERN MEDITERRANEAN ROUTE IS STILL IN FULL USE TO FACILITATE THE GROWING NUMBER OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS FROM AFRICA. NIGERIANS TOPPED THE LIST OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS INTO ITALY IN 2017, FORMING 16% OF THE TOTAL NUMBER OF ARRIVALS THERE.[122] • IN FEBRUARY 2017 ITALIAN GOVERNMENT ACCEPTED TO FUND LIBYAN COASTGUARD. SINCE THEN MANY MIGRANTS WERE FORCED TO GO BACK TO LIBYA. • ON 7 OCTOBER, 2018 AT LEAST 10 MIGRANTS ARE BELIEVED TO HAVE DIED IN A BOAT OFF THE COAST OF MOROCCO.[124] HELENA MALENO FOUNDER OF THE GROUP WALKING BORDERS TOLD THE REPORTERS THE MIGRANTS CONSTANTLY APPEALED FOR HELP FROM SPAIN AND MOROCCO BEFORE THEY DIED