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.
The UN has described rising numbers of people fleeing their homes, saying more must be done to "shoulder this responsibility." German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said Germany will welcome more refugees in the future.
On December 17, 2018, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Global Compact on Refugees. Has the protection of refugees around the world improved since then?
A global summit in Geneva is hoping to address a series of issues relating to global migration trends reaching from forcible displacement to the energy and infrastructure needs of refugees. The event, however, might also be hijacked by politicians pursuing their own agendas.
UN experts on arbitrary detention have urged the Greek government to make urgent changes to the detention of migrants, stressing that the country was in continuing violation of various international standards.
The H&M Group, known in many parts of the world for its fast-fashion clothing, has pledged to promote the ethical recruitment and protection of migrant workers in global supply chains. The multinational company last week signed a memorandum of understanding with UN agency International Organization for Migration (IOM).
A global study by the United Nations has called on countries to end the detention of child migrants. Hundreds of thousands of children are held in immigration detention in more than 80 countries worldwide. The study claims this violates children's rights and does serious harm to their physical and mental health.
A report released by the United Nations in early September accused Libyan local and state authorities of being involved in human trafficking. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres wrote in the report that both local and state authorities in Libya are involved in the human trafficking of migrants. The UN said that the information it had received in order to write the report was "credible."
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet has voiced concern for a number of policies carried out by European countries which she feels express a “lethal disregard” for migrants. In a speech on Monday, Bachelet said actions by some European countries to criminalize NGOs have had “deadly consequences for adults and children seeking safety.”
The UN Security Council did not issue a statement condemning the bombing in Libya after the US reportedly did not endorse it. Washington earlier criticized the attack as 'abhorrent', but did not call for a ceasefire.
With more than 70 million displaced people worldwide, working out how to provide them with shelter is a huge challenge. Designing a place that could become their home for decades is even harder, especially when there is little political will.
Vaccines save millions of lives, and yet misinformation and limited availability have left large numbers of children at risk. In Europe, migrants will continue to be more vulnerable than host populations unless they have access to immunization, experts say.