Migration in 2019 – numbers worth knowing
Fewer asylum seekers are coming to Germany, yet the number of people in need of protection worldwide continues to rise. Here are some of the key migration facts and figures for 2019.
marion macgregor
Greek islanders protest over migrant camps
Residents, business owners and officials on the Greek islands of Lesbos, Samos and Chios are holding a day of protests over migrant camps. Local authorities are demanding that Athens speed up transfers of migrants to the mainland.
Migrants attempt to reach UK from Belgium
Eight migrants remain missing after trying to cross from Belgium to the United Kingdom. A total of 14 people are believed to have set out from De Panne but were forced to swim back to shore when their boat capsized. Six of the migrants, who are from Afghanistan and Iran, were taken in custody on Tuesday.
Selma and Mala's story: How a smuggler's dirty trick broke up a family
Selma and her husband fled Iran with their two children more than a year ago. After becoming separated at the Greek border, they finally ended up in Germany -- but in two different cities. Now they are desperate to be reunited. This is Selma's story.
Serbia to take around 100 unaccompanied children from Greece
Greece and Serbia have discussed a plan to relocate about 100 unaccompanied migrant children currently in Greece to Serbia. The plan was agreed last month and will be carried out with the help of the UN.
Migrants remain 'silent bystanders' in Europe's media coverage
Migration and refugees make the news more often in Germany than in nearly all other European countries. But researchers say that across Europe, media coverage rarely gives migrants themselves a voice.
Nearly 1,000 migrants taken back to Libya in the first two weeks of 2020
Hundreds of migrants have been picked up in the Mediterranean this month and sent back to Libya. All the migrants were taken to detention centers, where the UN migration agency IOM has warned they are at increased risk of human trafficking.
Germany: One 'anchor center', two score cards
Prison camps or places of sanctuary? More efficient or restricting asylum seekers' rights? Opinions about Germany’s ‘anchor’ centers remain deeply divided. InfoMigrants visited Bamberg in Bavaria to find out how the center there is working 16 months on.
Italy: A refugee app, made by refugees
Migrants in the northern Italian city of Turin can now access a virtual map showing services from the closest toilet to the opening hours of the legal aid office. 'OASI on the street' - the app - was launched last week. Its creators, themselves refugees, hope that it will help migrants to make well-informed choices as well as offering immediate practical support.
Germany extends ban on deportations to Syria
Germany's state interior ministers have agreed not to send rejected asylum seekers back to Syria for at least another six months, saying the country is still too dangerous. But they plan to lift some restrictions on deportation in the longer term.
Number of Afghans deported from Germany reaches 800
Germany has deported another group of rejected asylum seekers from Afghanistan back to their home country. 44 men arrived in Kabul on Wednesday - the 30th group to be deported in the past three years.
Sea rescue - what the law says
Under international law, ships have a clear duty to help those in distress at sea. But when the ships are run by non-governmental organizations, and the people in distress are migrants, there are very often questions about what is 'the right thing to do'. The German news agency epd asked a maritime law expert for some answers.