EU Eastern Borders: Belarus and Poland Enact Brutal Violence and Block Aid Workers, Lithuania Lifts State of Emergency
As the EU’s border and coast guard agency, Frontex, tallies 8,000 “illegal border crossings” into the EU from Belarus in 2021, rights groups continue to document violence, torture, abuse and freezing temperatures faced by people on the move at the border. Médecins...
Med: Tragedy Continues as Routes Change and Situation in Libya Deteriorates Even Further
As people are forced to take ever more dangerous routes, the tragedy on the Mediterranean continues. 2021 closed with a death toll of more than 1,500 lives lost over the year: meanwhile, more than 32,000 people were intercepted and returned to Libya where the...
Atlantic Route and Spain: One in Five Canary Route Journeys End Deadly, Spanish Rescue Service Restarts Reporting, Law Reform Lets Young New Arrivals Work
A Spanish NGO says 4,404 people lost their lives trying to reach Spain from Africa in 2021. The dramatic rise in deaths is thought to be linked to EU and member states efforts to clampdown on migration via the Mediterranean. The Spanish civil rescue service,...
The AIDA country report on Turkey is now available in Arabic and Turkish
The latest AIDA Country Update 2020 on Turkey is now out in Arabic and Turkish. The AIDA Update offers the only comprehensive analysis of legislative, policy and practice developments relating to the asylum procedure, reception conditions, detention of asylum seekers,...
Policy Note: EU Support to Afghanistan: Scoring High on Humanitarian Assistance and Low on Protection in Europe?
ECRE has published a Policy Note that analyses the European countries’ practices and policy reactions to the situation in Afghanistan, with focus on access to protection in Europe, evacuations, resettlement and safe pathways to Europe. After the fall of the Afghan...
European Commission Presents Proposed Legislation to Address Situations of “Instrumentalisation” of Migrants and a Revised Schengen Borders Code
On 14 December 2021, the European Commission presented two legislative proposals, a regulation addressing the situation of instrumentalisation in migration and asylum and a revision of the Schengen Borders Code. The proposal for a Regulation addressing the situation...
Overview of Status Quo Regarding Evacuations, Pathways to Protection and Access to Asylum for Afghans in Europe – December 2021
ECRE has published a document on past and current evacuation schemes available for Afghans; other pathways to protection; and the treatment of Afghan international protection applicants. The document compiles information collected from ECRE member organisations, the...
Belgium: EASO to Support Authorities Struggling with Reception Crisis
On 16 December Belgium signed an operational plan with the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) for support in the form of “reception assets and equipment, personnel and technical expertise” to assist Belgian asylum authorities in dealing with the ongoing reception...