European migrant crisis

beach scene

Ukrainian refugees found shelter in Spain’s empty hotels. But then, tourists came back.

Ukraine

Beach towns like Calella turned their hotels, shut down by the pandemic, into safe havens for thousands of Ukrainians fleeing the war. But with tourists back, refugees are struggling to find more reliable forms of accommodation.

An aerial view of Fairbourne village in Gwynedd in Wales, Wednesday, Oct. 20, 2021.

Climate change may be the leading driver of tomorrow’s refugee crisis

Refugees
A Syrian grocery shop in Istanbul sells brands that are familiar to Syrian customers, such as canned meats and condensed milk.

Syrian refugees and migrants in Turkey face a difficult decision to return home 

Migration
European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson arrives for a meeting of EU justice and interior ministers at the European Council building in Brussels, Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2021.

EU’s top migration official calls for global response to help Afghans in order to avoid migration crisis in Europe

Afghanistan
Faeza Satouf, from Syria, looks at a photo of her graduation day on her phone during an interview in Nivaa, Denmark, Wednesday, April 21, 2021. 

Family in conflict: Part II

Critical State
Migrants wearing face masks to curb the spread of COVID-19 sit at a pier as Italian police officers stand by.

Some migrants crossing the Mediterranean say they prefer death to being returned

Migration

At least five migrants have drowned off the coast of Libya, including a woman and child. The journey to a better life is often harrowing.
Some migrants crossing the Mediterranean say they prefer death to being returned

A group of people protest and carry a heart-shaped sign that says "Refugees welcome here."

Denmark revokes residency permits of some Syrian refugees

Migration

Under a new policy that deems certain parts of Syria safe to return, some Syrian refugees now face deportation and, in some cases, family separations. The European Union, the United States and numerous human rights groups have condemned the decision. 

The new migrant facility on Lesbos will be built next to an active landfill, according to a map published by local media in the fall.

‘This island is a prison’: Migrants say plan for a refugee camp on Lesbos is too isolating

Refugees

The European Union has announced a quarter-billion euros in funding for five new refugee camps on Greek islands, including on Lesbos. Some are worried the new site will not improve conditions for migrants on the island. 

A migrant stands outside his tent at Karatepe refugee camp, on the northeastern Aegean island of Lesbos, Greece, March 29, 2021. The European Union's home affairs commissioner is visiting asylum-seeker facilities on the eastern Greek islands of Samos and

Activists protest migrant facility plan in Greece: ‘Greek islands will not be turned to prisons’ 

Refugees

A group of residents gathered in the port city of Mytilene to protest plans for a permanent migrant facility on the island. 

Rescue workers carry the body of a dead migrant after a boat with 35 migrants from the Maghreb region capsized at the beach of Orzola, in the Canary Island of Lanzarote, Spain, Nov. 25, 2020.

Canary Islands face influx of migrants from West Africa

Immigration

About 20,000 African migrants have reached the Spanish archipelago this year, half of whom arrived in the last two months alone. More than 500 have died attempting the journey.