Some 19,830 irregular migrants and refugees reached Europe by sea since the beginning of 2019, the UN migration agency said Friday.
19,830 REFUGEES
Of that figure, 512 died at sea, according to a report published by the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
According to Ana Dodevska IOM Spain, 7,666 refugees and irregular migrants arrived in Spain through May, 22. In the first 5 months of 2018, roughly 8,150 irregular migrants arrived in the country by the Western Mediterranean route. Until May 22, 2019, some 950 irregular migrants arrived Spain, much fewer than 3,523 arrivals in May 2018, IOM Spain reported.
Arrivals in Greece by May 22, 2019, reached 9,430, IOM Greece’s Christine Nikolaidou reported. In the same period last year, 10,641 irregular migrants arrived in Greece through the sea. A total of 30,510 migrants died between 2014 and 2018 while making the treacherous journey to Europe, the UN agency reported in January.
