More Than a Million Refugees and Migrants Reach Europe

During 2015, a record 1.3 million people applied for asylum in the 28 member states of the European Union, Norway and Switzerland, according to the Pew Research Center, nearly double the previous peak of about 700,000 set in 1992. The conflict in Syria was by far the biggest driver of the movement, and according to UNHCR about half of those who crossed the Mediterranean that year were Syrians, with Afghans making up 20 percent and Iraqis 7 percent. Violence in Afghanistan and Iraq, abuses in Eritrea and poverty in Kosovo also led many people to leave.

According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), more than 1,011,700 people arrived in Europe by sea in 2015 and almost 34,900 by land, compared with about 280,000 arrivals by land and sea in all of 2014. While earlier movements had concentrated primarily on the central route from North Africa to Italy, the maritime corridor shifted decisively to the eastern Aegean Sea. More than 800,000 people, about 80 percent of sea arrivals, crossed the Aegean from Turkey to Greek islands such as Lesbos, Kos, and Chios, while crossings from North Africa to Italy fell slightly, from 170,000 in 2014 to around 150,000. From Greece, travellers attempted to journey overland across the western Balkans toward destinations in central and northern Europe. The IOM recorded more than 3,770 deaths in the Mediterranean that year; most occurred on the longer crossing from North Africa to Italy, while more than 800 people died in the Aegean.