Authorities in Bosnia have started transferring migrants from the streets of Sarajevo to a reception center as a part of measures to control the spread of the coronavirus. A similar operation will also take place this week in Bihac.
On March 28, seven refugees who live in Italy began managing the Instagram account of the UN Refugee Agency UNHCR in Italy to express solidarity with Italians who are fighting against the coronavirus epidemic.
At least 30 shacks used by migrants near the city of Foggia in southern Italy were burnt down over the weekend. Over 1,500 migrants live in the makeshift encampment in Borgo Mezzanone near a migrant reception center.
The Italian interior ministry has asked all prefects to monitor the health of migrants at repatriation centers to prevent an outbreak of Codiv-19. One coronavirus case at a CPR in northern Italy was confirmed last week.
Dunja Mijatovic, the human rights commissioner of the Council of Europe, has asked member states to release as many people as possible from detention centers for migrants amid the coronavirus emergency. She says that these facilities "provide poor opportunities for social distancing and other measures to protect against Covid-19 infection."
From stay permits to citizenship requests -- certificates required by the Italian authorities expiring between January 31 and April 15 will have their validity extended until June 15 due to the coronavirus emergency.
Migrants hosted in communities in Italy's northern region of Piedmont are making protective masks for the police amid the Covid-19 pandemic, which has hit the country especially hard.
Dozens of Italian associations have published a joint statement urging the government to adopt measures to protect migrants, asylum seekers, and the homeless during the Covid-19 emergency.
The Italian migrant aid organization Linea d'Ombra has called for immediate assistance for migrants and the homeless amid the Covid-19 emergency. Between 50 and 100 people gathered in a square in the city of Trieste every day without "shelter, food, or water," the NGO warned.
Italy's national detainee rights guarantor has shown concern over the situation of migrants detained in Italian repatriation centers, arguing that keeping migrants in the facilities for longer than originally planned would curtail their freedom. Due to the spread of coronavirus, deportations to home countries are currently suspended.
A southern Italian regional government has pledged €2 million to assist migrants in the coronavirus emergency. Measures, which were announced on Tuesday, include assisting residents at the informal camps of San Ferdinando and Piana di Sibari to prevent the spread of Covid-19.
The civil liberties commission of the European Parliament has called on the EU to take immediate action to prevent an outbreak of Covid-19 among refugees and migrants in the overcrowded camps on the Greek islands.