BALKAN ROUTE ― NGO questions fall in irregular border crossings ― Major rescue operation after boat incident on Croatia-Bosnia and Herzegovina border ― Border guards in Croatia again accused of violence against people on the move ― Local opposition to new reception centre near Croatia-Bosnia and Herzegovina border | European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE)

A new NGO report has raised doubts about the apparent decrease in the number of people using the Balkan migration route.
A group of people have been rescued after their boat capsized as they tried to cross the river border between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia.
A new media report has revealed fresh evidence of violence committed against people on the move on the Croatia–Bosnia and Herzegovina border.
Plans to open a migration reception centre on the Croatian side of the Croatia–Bosnia and Herzegovina border have been meet with opposition from local politicians and residents in both countries.

A new NGO report has raised doubts about the apparent decrease in the number of people using the Balkan migration route. The report, which was published by ECRE member organisation the International Rescue Committee (IRC), presents data on the “profiles, migratory intentions, and challenges faced” by people who arrived in Trieste in 2025. IRC Italy noted that it had supported 9,761 people during the course of the year, a 27% decrease from the previous year. This decrease was significantly lower than the 42% fall in the number of irregular border crossings along the Balkan migration route that was reported by the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex). Commenting on the findings, Sara Bonfanti from IRC Italy said: “This mismatch between international perception and local reality is the core insight our data brings to the table. It shows that local dynamics in Italy do not mirror officially reported trends, and that people continue to arrive in substantial numbers despite the overall downturn”. Bonfanti also decried the poor conditions that many people on the move experienced when they arrived in the border city. “Exposure to serious health risks caused by poor hygiene conditions, harsh weather, and the constant threat of exploitation and abuse in the area remains alarmingly high for the fourth year in a row,” she said.

A group of people have been rescued after their boat after their boat capsized as they tried to cross the river border between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia. According to Croatian Minister of the Interior Davor Bozinovic, approximately 100 members of Croatia’s emergency services were involved in rescuing 30 people from a flooded woodland area next to the Sava river close to the village of Babina Greda about 240 kilometres southeast of Zagreb on 1 April. Eight of the rescued people were taken to nearby hospitals where they received treatment for hypothermia and exposure-related symptoms. The incident occurred less than three months after three people died whilst trying to cross the Save River in December 2025.

A media investigation has revealed fresh evidence of violence committed against people on the move on the Croatia–Bosnia and Herzegovina border. On 1 April, Al Jazeera published the testimonies of “more than a dozen” people who reported that they had been “physically assaulted and robbed by Croatian authorities”. One 29-year old man from Pakistan who Al Jazeera called Abdul said: “The Croatian police held me for 24 hours and beat me. They didn’t let me use the bathroom or give me food. Then they took all my money, and they dropped me alone in the woods”. Meanwhile, a 26-year old man from Morocco accused Croatian border guards of deliberately breaking his phone “by smashing it” because “[t]hey know we need our phones for maps and calls”. The claims made in the Al Jazeera report are the latest in a long line of accusations of abuse that have been levelled at Croatian border guards in recent years. In October 2024, the NGO No Name Kitchen published a damning report in which it accused them of burning people’s possession, including passports and phones.

Plans to open a migration reception centre on the Croatian side of the Croatia–Bosnia and Herzegovina border have been meet with opposition from local politicians and residents in both countries. In February, Croatian authorities announced that they were planning to convert the former Zeljava military airbase into a reception centre with a capacity of over 1,500 places. Several local politicians have spoken out against the project and a protest took place on 22 February in the nearby village of Korenica. A resident of the Bosnian town of Bihać, which is also located close to the proposed site, reflected on the region’s previous experience of refugee camps when he told the Sarajevo Times: “It will fall on us again. Unfortunately, we are not a country of the European Union and it all boils down to that – as long as it is not in my yard”. Elsewhere the head of the Plitvice Lakes municipality, Hrvoje Matejčić, said: “We are afraid that we are brought before the fait accompli due to strategic decisions and migrant routes. We do not know when construction could begin or whether the decision is final. There is now talk of a temporary centre that should position 450 containers on the runway”.

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