UK: UK signs agreements with Western Balkans countries to tackle people smuggling ― Officials express doubts about government’s ‘smash the gangs’ policy ― Asylum applicants stranded on Diego Garcia finally allowed to enter UK
The UK has signed agreements with Kosovo, North Macedonia and Serbia as part of its efforts to tackle people-smuggling gangs. Officials have cast doubts over the government’s efforts to dismantle the people-smuggling gangs that are responsible for many of the small...
AIDA Country Report on Ukraine
The AIDA Country Report on Ukraine provides a detailed analysis of legislative and practice-related developments in asylum procedures, reception conditions, detention of asylum applicants and content of international protection in Ukraine in 2023. It is the first AIDA...
MEDITERRANEAN: Council of Europe calls for ‘immediate admission’ of people stranded in Cyprus buffer zone ― Italy to resume transfers to migration centres in Albania despite ongoing legal issues ― Court in Greece acquits asylum seeking minor of people smuggling charges
The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights has urged Cyprus to allow the people who are currently stuck in the buffer zone to seek asylum in the country. Italy is planning to resume the transfer of people rescued in international waters in the Mediterranean...
EU EXTERNAL PARTNERS: Concerns about planned refugee law in Egypt ― EU-funded rescue centre in Libya finally set to open ― European Commission withholding outcomes of Tunisia human rights inquiry ― EU member states and NGOs condemn Israeli ban on UNRWA
Egypt is planning to start registering refugees itself instead of relying on the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR). An EU-funded search and rescue centre in Libya is reportedly set to become fully operational following years of delays. The European Ombudsman has...
MEDITERRANEAN: Confusion regarding future of Italian migration centres in Albania ― ECtHR criticises Malta’s regime again ― Asylum seekers still trapped in Cyprus buffer zone ― Cyprus President calls for normalisation of relations with Syria ― NGOs call on Greece to fix ‘dysfunctional’ registration system
A decision by the Civil Court of Rome has led to uncertainty regarding the future of the recently opened Italian migration centres in Albania. The European Court of Human Rights has again criticised Malta’s treatment of vulnerable children and lack of effective...
ATLANTIC ROUTE and SPAIN: Spain asks Frontex to patrol West African coasts ― Senegal to receive € 30 million from the EU to curb migration ― Spain states opposition to migration centres outside the EU; plans to regularise thousands of undocumented people ― Portugal is ‘slightly’ open to migration ― Record rescue in the Canary Islands
The Spanish government has asked the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) to try to secure permission to patrol the coasts of several West African countries in order to support the latter’s own migration management efforts. The European Commission has...
Op-ed: Does the Rome court’s refusal to validate the detention order of the first asylum seekers brought to Albania mark the end of the Italy-Albania deal?
By Andreina De Leo, member of ECRE member organisation the Association for Juridical Studies on Immigration (ASGI) On 18 October, the Civil Court of Rome blocked the detention of 12 asylum seekers from Bangladesh and Egypt, who had been transferred to Albania under a...
BALKAN ROUTE: Significant decrease in irregular border crossings via Balkan route ― Croatian border police accused of pushbacks and burning people’s belongings ― ECRE member organisation calls for re-opening of reception centres in Serbia ― Hungary, Serbia and Slovakia criticise EU asylum and migration policies; call for more ‘regional co-operation’ ― ECRE member organisation wins human rights award
The number of irregular border crossings into the EU via the Balkan route decreased significantly in the first nine months of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023. An NGO has accused the Croatian border police of burning the personal belongings of people who have...