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Warsaw/Ljubljana (STA) – The number of irregular border crossings of the EU decreased by 38 percent in 2024, falling to the lowest level since 2021, according to data published on Monday by the European Border Agency Frontex. The Slovenian police handled 44,331 illegal state border crossings in the first eleven months of 2024, which is almost a fifth less than in the same period of 2023.
According to preliminary Frontex data, 239,000 irregular external EU border crossings were counted in 2024, representing a 38-percent annual decrease and the lowest number since 2021, when migration was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. On the Western Balkan migratory route, the number of irregular crossings decreased by 78 percent and by 59 percent on the Central Mediterranean route. On other migratory routes, Frontex reports an increase.
Among the migrants, in 2024, Syrian and Afghan nationals predominated. On the Western Balkan route, the entry point for many who later cross Slovenia, the most counted were Syrians, Afghans, and Turks.
In Slovenia, the data is similar, with far the most being Syrian nationals, ten times more than in 2023, and thus accounting for a third of all cases. They are followed by Afghans and Turks. (January 14)
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