In October 2024, the EU recorded 86,945 first-time asylum applications, a 24% drop from the previous year. Greece stood out with the highest per capita rate of applicants (79.4 per 100,000 people) and received 445 unaccompanied minors, highlighting its pivotal role in managing migration. Syrians remained the largest group of asylum seekers, while Germany, Spain, Italy, and France hosted the majority of applicants.
Tag: Mediterranean migration
Two Russian traffickers have been sentenced to a total of 380 years in prison and fined €3.8 million for smuggling 74 illegal immigrants into Greece. The migrants, including children, were discovered on a sailboat near Astypalaia in September 2023. The traffickers were found guilty of endangering lives and illegally transporting the migrants for profit. This significant ruling underscores Greece’s commitment to combating human trafficking in the Mediterranean.
Greek authorities have recovered the bodies of four migrants after their boat sank off Rhodes in the Aegean Sea. A search-and-rescue operation is ongoing, with 25 survivors located on land. Greece continues to be a key entry point for migrants seeking to reach the European Union.
Early Wednesday, the Coast Guard rescued 52 migrants in the sea region of Kali Limenes, Crete. The migrants, from Sudan and Egypt, had called for help from a dinghy using emergency number 112. A Coast Guard vessel quickly responded, bringing them to Kali Limenes before transferring them to Heraklio for further assistance.
A cruise ship rescued 77 migrants from a distressed sailboat off the southwestern coast of Greece, Greek authorities announced Tuesday. The Maltese-flagged cargo ship initially spotted the boat 112 nautical miles southwest of Pylos.