In June, the Western Mediterranean became the most active migratory route into Europe, according to figures published by the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) on 17 July.
The number of migrants reaching Spain “jumped 166% from a year ago to nearly 6,400 in June”.
In the first half of 2018, there were some 14,700 irregular border crossings on the Western Mediterranean route, almost double the figure from a year ago. Nationals of Morocco, Guinea and Mali made up the highest number of arrivals.
This route has overtaken the Central Mediterranean, which nonetheless remains at the heart of current controversy with Italy’s decisions to refuse access to its ports. The number of migrants arriving in Italy in June fell to about 3,000, down 87% from June 2017. The total number of migrants detected on this route in the first half of 2018 fell to roughly 16,100, down 81% from a year ago. Tunisian and Eritreans were the most numerous groups.
Irregular migrants taking the Eastern Mediterranean route numbered some 3,600 in June, nearly a third fewer than in the previous month. However, because of a significant increase of irregular crossings in recent months on the land borders with Turkey, the total number of migrants, principally from Syria and Iraq, detected on the Eastern Mediterranean route in the first six months of the year stood at around 24,300. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)