Saving lives at sea must remain key priority. UNHCR commends the action of the Italian Coast Guard in coordination with Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency.

Refugees and migrants attempting to reach Europe via the Mediterranean Sea lost their lives at an alarming rate in 2018, as cuts in search and rescue operations reinforced its position as the world’s deadliest sea crossing. The latest ‘Desperate Journeys’ report, released today by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, says six lives were lost on average every day. An estimated 2,275 died or went missing crossing the Mediterranean in 2018, despite a major drop in the number of arrivals reaching European shores. In total, 139,300 refugees and migrants arrived in Europe, the lowest number in five years.

Refugee and migrant women and girls face risks of sexual and gender-based violence along the journey to and in Europe. (UNHCR)

Reception conditions and the asylum system in Greece must be rapidly strengthened in implementation of EU-Turkey deal (UNHCR).

Proper information, counselling and accommodation needs to be provided to people affected by decisions at border points. (UNHCR)

Preliminary deaths from hypothermia highlight risks that desperate people are forced to take in the absence of legal avenues to seek safety in Europe. (UNHCR)

Physical barriers and restrictive policies in Hungary have resulted in effectively denying access to territory and asylum for those in need of international protection.

One in five of those surveyed are still searching for a family member missing in Syria. (UNHCR)

On World Refugee Day, new shipwrecks in the Mediterranean are a reminder of the grave dangers that people confront when forced to flee their countries because of war and persecution.

On 15 August, UNHCR applauded the decision by the Government of Malta to permit the disembarkation of 141 asylum-seekers and migrants rescued on the Central Mediterranean by an NGO boat, the Aquarius. We also commend those European countries who have come forward to offer relocation places for rescued passengers post-disembarkation. The situation of the Aquarius and in particular this standoff has again highlighted the need for a Mediterranean regional arrangement that provides clarity and predictability on where boats carrying rescued passengers can dock.