WATCH: (Scroll Down For Video) Around 1.2million illegal crossings have been made into the EU this year as Europe has lost control of its borders.
Official figures show that 540,000 migrants have arrived on the Greek islands so far – 13 times the figure for last year – as the crisis shows no sign of abating.
Despite the worsening weather, more than 150,000 people made the journey from Turkey to Greece last month compared with fewer than 8,500 in October 2014.
The European Union’s border agency, Frontex, said Syrians made up the largest number of the new arrivals but added that the share of Afghan immigrants has ‘risen significantly’ in recent months.
The total number of illegal crossings at the EU’s external frontiers in the ten months between January and October stood at 1.2million, although the true figure could be even higher.
The total was four times the 282,000 recorded during the whole of 2014. Some of those crossings will have been by migrants who have traversed EU borders more than once.
In the first ten months of the year, 500,000 detections of illegal border crossings were recorded on the EU’s external borders in the Western Balkans, mainly on Hungary and Croatia’s borders with Serbia.
Around 500 migrants paid up to £10,000 to be trafficked into Italy listed as a fictitious new performer, dancer or technician in the circus business, police in Sicily say.
The migrants were allegedly given a false visa by workers within Sicily’s regional authorities. €2,000 to €3,000 from each migrant went to the circus owners, investigator say.
