Almost 12,000 migrants and refugees have entered Europe by sea in 2019 and over 300 died on the three main Mediterranean Sea routes, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said in a published statement on Friday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 29th March, 2019) Almost 12,000 migrants and refugees have entered Europe by sea in 2019 and over 300 died on the three main Mediterranean Sea routes, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said in a published statement on Friday."The International Organization for Migration reports that 11,901 migrants and refugees have entered Europe by sea through March 27. Deaths on the three main Mediterranean Sea routes have reached 311 individuals," the statement said.
According to IOM statistics the majority of migrants arrived in Greece (5,482) and Spain (5,537) and in the January 1 - March 27, 2019 period about 1,800 less migrants arrived in Europe by sea than in the same period in 2018.
The data on the migrants' arrivals was compiled based on data from the governments of Italy, Malta, Greece, Cyprus, Spain and IOM field offices and the data on migrants' death was compiled by the IOM's Global Migration Data Analysis Center.
On Wednesday, the European Union said it will suspend the operation of its patrol ships that have rescued tens of thousands of migrants in the Mediterranean sea, a move which Amnesty International relief organization has condemned. The push to suspend the operations came from Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini, who said Rome would no longer be the main point of disembarkation for migrants being saved by the patrol ships.
