The government of Bosnia and Herzegovina announced it was beginning to deport migrants back to their home countries. The measure began on Sunday with a test case of two Pakistani nationals on a commercial flight.
The plight of Ukrainian refugees has captured the world's attention. Meanwhile, the struggles of millions of refugees from other countries have faded from view. How are they faring? A look at the Balkans.
The EU says it has registered a considerable increase of irregular entries into the bloc from the Western Balkans. The EU border agency Frontex said that many of the irregular migrants and refugees were either Afghan or Syrian.
Sayem, a Bangladeshi migrant in Bosnia and Herzegovina, told InfoMigrants that he was mistreated by Croatian border police. Investigative outlets have documented many similar testimonies in recent years.
A migrant camp in Bosnia has been closed and up to 200 residents have been moved to the nearly Lipa facility, according to an aid group. No Name Kitchen said migrants also were forcibly evicted from squats in the area.
The Kikinda camp in Serbia is home to around 550 migrants, including around 100 from India. One of them is Kumar, who cooks Biryani for his fellow South Asians.
Mohammad decided to attempt the dangerous route to Europe rather than pay a bribe of thousands of euros for a job in Bangladesh. Three years later he is in Bosnia’s Lipa camp, still hoping to reach the EU.
Migrants in the Balkans are reportedly exploring new routes to enter the EU, as the number of irregular border crossings from the Una-Sana Canton in the west of Bosnia and Herzegovina into Croatia has been decreasing.
The number of migrants in Bosnia and Herzegovina remains low, according to the UN Migration Agency. Most of those traveling through or stuck in the country are Afghans who hope to make it to Germany.
The European Union and its border agency Frontex are using increasing amounts of technology to monitor migration at external and internal borders across Europe. Experts say that tracking technology is often being deployed to evade legal responsibilities.
Fashion might be the furthest thing on the minds of people escaping war, persecution and hardship. However, an initiative in Bosnia-Herzegovina makes sure that creative ideas by migrants get to have their own moment in the limelight.
The Council of Europe (CoE) has called on Croatia to take "strong measures" against the mistreatment and abuse of migrants at the hands of Croatian police officers along the border with Bosnia-Herzegovina.