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Italy + 10 more

Number of migrants reaching Italy fell 40% in September

Frontex

The number of migrants crossing the Central Mediterranean fell to nearly 12 700 in September, down 40% from the previous month due to poor weather conditions, although the trend in the first nine months of this year remained roughly in line with 2015. Most of them were rescued off the Libyan coast. The total number of migrants who headed to Italy via the Central Mediterranean route stood at 127 600 in the January-September period of this year.

Nationals from Nigeria and Guinea accounted for the largest share of migrants on the Central Mediterranean route in September.

The number of migrants arriving on the Greek islands in the Eastern Mediterranean also fell last month to 2 960, nearly 24% fewer than in August and accounted for barely 2% of the figure from September 2015. In the first nine months of 2016, the total number of migrants who reached the Greek islands in the Aegean dropped by nearly 60% to some 167 200. Most of these arrived in the first quarter of 2016.

Nationals from Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq continued to account for a large majority of the migrants reaching the Greek islands from Turkey.

On the Western Balkans route, the number of detections in September stood at slightly more than 1 140, less than 1% of the figure from the same month a year ago. Afghanis, Pakistanis and Iraqis were the most represented nationalities on this route.