The European Commission has proposed granting automatic temporary protection for up to three years to people fleeing the war in Ukraine. This would include a residence permit and access to employment and social welfare.
European Union and UNHCR officials have announced that Latvia, Lithuania and Poland still use "pushbacks and other violations of human rights" at the borders to keep migrants out. They added that they are also denying access to aid groups trying to help people in the border region with Belarus.
Nearly half of the European Union member states want Brussels to pay for physical barriers to tackle the "political instrumentalization" of migrants.
European Union officials have pledged millions of euros to help member state Lithuania tackle an ongoing spike in migrant arrivals. Lithuanian officials blame the spike on the government of neighboring Belarus and its authoritarian president, Alexander Lukashenko.
The Ocean Viking arrived in Sicily on Friday morning to disembark over 500 migrants it has on board. The crew and migrants had been waiting for a week to be assigned a safe port. Food and water were about to run out when they were assigned a port on Thursday evening.
The medical charity Doctors without borders (MSF) has announced it will suspend its medical activities in two Libyan detention centers because the levels of violence taking place there are "no longer acceptable."
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez told reporters that the more than 8,000 arrivals in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta were a "huge crisis for Spain and the whole of Europe." Members of the European Commission too have called the arrivals "worrying," and called for stronger partnerships to manage migration.
The EU operation monitoring the arms embargo against Libya, named Irini, is entering its second year. Despite being active in the Mediterranean, it has not rescued any migrants.
The European Commission has proposed a plan to stimulate the economies of Mediterranean countries such as Algeria, Libya and Morocco. The goal: To support their attempts to recover from the COVID-19 crisis and to curb irregular migration.
Human Rights Watch has said that thousands of asylum seekers, aid workers and international personnel may be at risk of lead poisoning at the new migrant camp on the Greek island of Lesbos. The camp was constructed on a former military firing range after the Moria camp burned down.
EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson traveled to Morocco for a two-day visit this week. Her aim was to improve cooperation with Morocco on the return of migrants and start the discussion over visa facilitation.
EU Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson, speaking at Med Dialogues 2020 in Rome, highlighted that the new EU Pact on Migration "represents a new beginning" in which "the central element is to strengthen cooperation with our neighbors and with our partners."