 "Migrants, most of them from Eritrea, jump into the water from a crowded wooden boat as they are helped by members of an NGO during a rescue operation at the Mediterranean sea")
According to UN refugee agency United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), 2016 has been the deadliest year for migrants. A total of 3,740 people have died since January in the Mediterranean sea, on their boat journey to Europe.
According to UNHCR, some 303,838 people had crossed the Mediterranean Sea to Europe till 30 September 2016.
This year so far, 327,800 people have undertaken the sea voyage, 3,740 of whom were dead or missing in 2016 so far. One in 88 migrants undertaking the journey have died, compared to one in 269 in 2015, when at least 1,015,078 people made the crossing, according to the UN agency.
The UNHCR has noted that on the Central Mediterranean route between Libya and Italy the likelihood of dying is high, at one death for every 47 arrivals.
According to the agency, the top-10 nationalities which represent 79 per cent of Mediterranean sea arrivals are Syria Arab Republic (28 per cent), Afghanistan (14 per cent), Iraq (nine per cent), Nigeria (eight per cent), Eritrea (five per cent), Pakistan (three per cent), Guinea (three per cent), Gambia (three per cent), Sudan (three per cent), and others (three per cent).
Situation overview in Italy
On September 30, 159,419 persons were accommodated in reception centres in Italy. Of these, 123,178 persons were in temporary reception facilities, 820 in hotspots, and 13,229 in first line reception centres. Additionally, as of September 12, 22,192 persons were accommodated in second line facilities, ie the so-called SPRAR centres.
In Ventimiglia, at the Italy-France border, the Red Cross-run centre reportedly hosted up to 800 persons, mainly Sudanese nationals, despite a capacity of 360. Furthermore, the nearby church has been hosting approximately 100 persons, mainly from Eritrea, despite a capacity of approximately 50 places.
In close cooperation with the government and other partners, UNHCR in Italy is engaged at border points, in particular in areas of sea arrivals and hotspots, as well as in the strengthening of the reception system. UNHCR further provides support to the Italian authorities in the identification and referral of vulnerable groups. The agency also participates directly in refugee status determination in the decentralised territorial commissions and advises the government on the reform of the asylum system as well as contributes to the implementation of the resettlement programme.
Situation overview in Serbia, Hungary, and at the Serbia-Hungary border
The total number of refugees, migrants and asylum-seekers in Serbia rose from 4,700 at the beginning of the month to 5,700 by the end of September. Based on available government and UNHCR data on this population, around 45 per cent are adult men, 18 per cent are adult women and 37 per cent are children, with 53 per cent from Afghanistan, 14 per cent from Syria, 10 per cent from Pakistan, eight per cent from Iraq, four per cent from Iran and 11 per cent from other countries. Over 80 per cent were accommodated in governmental facilities, including in five asylum centres, four transit centres and one reception centre, with many facilities consequently exceeding their capacities.
The situation in the north at the border with Hungary continued to stabilise, with less than 150 asylum-seekers camping in the open on the Serbian side of the border waiting to be admitted into Hungarian transit zones, compared to a peak of over 1,000 in mid-July.
Situation overview in Greece
As arrivals continue at a similar level to September, several sites on the island continue to be overcrowded with their maximum capacity far exceeded. On Kos, efforts were being made to assist a group of around 300 people, mostly from Pakistan, who could not be accommodated in the reception and identification centre as the site was already at full capacity. Due to continued arrivals, between 170 and 200 people have no access to any kind of shelter and are forced to sleep in partially-collapsed buildings, makeshift shelters, and in the open air.
