Loading Most common nationalities of Mediterranean sea and land arrivals from January 2020
Loading Sea and land arrivals monthly
UNHCR, 01 May 2020
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is calling for greater coordination, solidarity and responsibility-sharing, in view of the increased movements of refugees and migrants in the Mediterranean Sea. Despite the extremely difficult circumstances faced by many countries at present due to COVID-19, the prote... Read more
UNHCR, 27 Apr 2020
With the world mobilizing to combat the spread of COVID-19, many countries in Europe and beyond have adopted exceptional measures to manage their borders, limiting air travel and cross-border mobility. UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, has called today on European countries to safeguard the many good pr... Read more
UNHCR, 22 Apr 2020
The coronavirus pandemic has deepened the plight of people fleeing war, conflict and persecution. As countries battle to protect their populations and economies, fundamental norms of refugee and human rights law are at risk. “The core principles of refugee protection are being put to test – but peo... Read more
UNHCR, 20 Apr 2020
Around the world COVID-19 is taking lives and changing communities but the virus is also inducing massive protection risks for women and girls forced to flee their homes, the Assistant High Commissioner for Protection at UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, Gillian Triggs, warned today. “We need to pay ur... Read more
UNHCR/UNICEF/IOM, 15 Apr 2020
IOM, the International Organization for Migration, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and UNICEF, the UN Children’s Fund, today welcomed the relocation of 12 unaccompanied asylum-seeking children from Greece to Luxembourg. The children, who had been living in overcrowded reception and identification cent... Read more
Loading Sea arrivals monthly
Loading Land arrivals monthly
Previous years | Arrivals * | Dead and missing |
2019 | 123,663 | 1,319 |
2018 | 141,472 | 2,277 |
2017 | 185,139 | 3,139 |
2016 | 373,652 | 5,096 |
2015 | 1,032,408 | 3,771 |
2014 | 225,455 | 3,538 |
* Arrivals include sea arrivals to Italy, Cyprus and Malta, both sea and land arrivals to Greece and Spain.
Refugee and Migrant Children arriving in Europe and how to Strengthen their Protection
Desperate Journeys (English)
Voyages du désespoir (French) Desperate Journeys (German) Ταξίδια Απελπισίας (Greek) Viaggi Disperati (Italian) Travesías Desesperadas (Spanish) |
Loading Routes towards the Mediterranean - Reducing risks and strengthening protection
Amid hostilities in Libya, 146 refugees evacuated to Italy. 146 refugees were evacuated today from Libya to Italy in a joint operation between UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and Italian and Libyan authorities. Italy is the first country to have stepped forward to receive evacuees from Libya since the recent violence began. The evacuation was carried out in collaboration with the Libyan Ministry of Interior. | |
29 Apr 2019 | |
UNHCR evacuates hundreds of vulnerable refugees out of Libya to safety. Amid violent clashes and a deteriorating security situation in Tripoli, 149 vulnerable refugees and asylum-seekers were evacuated to safety in Rome on 30 May. Many of the evacuees need medical treatment and are suffering from malnourishment. The group was moved from UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency’s Gathering and Departure Facility (GDF), after surviving months in dire conditions inside detention centres in other parts of the city. The evacuation was carried out in collaboration with Libyan and Italian authorities. | |
30 May 2019 | |
Refugees and migrants attempting to reach Europe via the Mediterranean Sea lost their lives at an alarming rate in 2018, as cuts in search and rescue operations reinforced its position as the world’s deadliest sea crossing. The latest ‘Desperate Journeys’ report, released today by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, says six lives were lost on average every day. An estimated 2,275 died or went missing crossing the Mediterranean in 2018, despite a major drop in the number of arrivals reaching European shores. In total, 139,300 refugees and migrants arrived in Europe, the lowest number in five years. | |
30 Jan 2019 | |
UNHCR welcomes Malta disembarkation of Sea Watch and Sea Eye passengers, calls for better, predictable approach | |
09 Jan 2019 | |
UNHCR calls on Romanian EU Presidency to unite EU countries in stronger and fairer response for refugees | |
21 Dec 2018 | |
UNHCR urges Greece to accelerate emergency measures to address conditions on Samos and Lesvos. Greek authorities must take urgent steps to address the humanitarian situation for around 11,000 asylum-seekers on the islands of Samos and Lesvos. Conditions in the Reception and Identification Centers (RICs) on the two islands are abhorrent. | |
06 Nov 2018 |
Desperate Journeys - January – December 2018 | |
Interactive report | |
Western Balkans | |
Western Balkans situation page | |
Dead and Missing in the Mediterranean (By Sea) | |
Online dashboard of dead and missing | |
Greece as a Country of Asylum | |
UNHCR Observations on the Current Situation of Asylum in Greece - December 2014 | |
International Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE) | |
IOM Portal - Routes | |
Migration flows - Europe | |
Mali situation information sharing portal | |
Up-to-date information on Malian Refugees in Burkina Faso, Mauritania and Niger and IDPs in Mali | |
Malta Asylum trends | |
Statistics and Analysis of Asylum Applications and Decisions - Malta | |
Mixed Migration Hub - North Africa | |
The MHub is the public platform of the North Africa Mixed Migration Task Force, a joint initiative of UNHCR, DRC, IOM, OHCHR, RMMS and UNODC. | |
Signup for the Latest Information products | |
Somali Displacement Crisis Information Sharing Portal- Refugees in the Horn of Africa | |
Statistics, Analysis and Reports on Somali Displacement in Africa | |
Syria Regional Refugee Response Inter-agency Information Sharing Portal | |
Statistics, Analysis and Reports about Syrian Refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, Turkey, Egypt and North Africa | |
UNHCR Education in Emergencies | |
UNHCR Italy | |
UNHCR Spain website | |
UNHCR Spain website |