In the first nine months of the year, significantly fewer migrants have come to Europe from Turkey by irregular means. That's according to a German media report that cites EU sources, which also revealed that Germany is no longer receiving the most asylum requests in Europe.
Police in North Macedonia have arrested 10 men suspected of migrant smuggling. Migrants are regularly found crammed into trucks and cars heading through the region en route to western Europe.
Italian authorities have deployed an additional 50 soldiers in the northeastern province of Udine to patrol the border with Slovenia and control the irregular entry of migrants from the Balkan route.
In an interview with ANSA and other European media outlets, EU Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson explained the new migration and asylum pact due to be unveiled on September 23, stressing that nobody will find ideal solutions but rather a well-balanced compromise that will ''improve the situation''.
168 migrants tried to cross the western Mediterranean from Morocco to Spain last week with makeshift crafts. Morocco's coast guard said it stopped the attempted crossings and returned the migrants to Morocco.
Austria has begun testing drones on its borders to Hungary and Slovenia. Equipped with live-tracking and heat-sensing cameras, the drones will be used to detect the movements of smugglers and irregular migrants.
Irregular migrant arrivals to Europe are picking up again, after record lows in April due to COVID-19 restrictions. The number of people reaching Italy and Malta by boat more than doubled from June to July.
Almost 100 migrants were found squeezed into a truck in North Macedonia. In an unrelated incident, 34 migrants were also discovered inside a truck in Poland.
The northeastern Italian region of Friuli Venezia Giulia (FVG), bordering with Slovenia, has asked the government to close minor crossings with the neighboring country to "avoid problems connected to immigration in addition to those related to healthcare."
A new generation of 'vloggers' are posting videos on YouTube in an effort to transform illegal immigration and trips motivated by hope for a better future into adventures.
Greek security forces have kept nearly 30 migrants from reaching Italy via sailboats and ferries. Moreover, they broke up a human-smuggling gang that reportedly brought migrants to western Europe via Greece and Italy systematically.
German police have raided 26 premises across the country on Wednesday during an operation to dismantle human trafficking rings. Three suspects have been detained, who are alleged to have links to a criminal group run by a 65-year-old Kosovan national, who was also arrested.