EU stops 104 illegal migrants at Belarus border

September 14, BPN. European Union countries have not allowed 104 migrants to illegally enter from Belarus over the past 24 hours.

A total of 71 migrants were forced back into Belarus on September 13, the Lithuanian State Border Guard Service (VSAT) reported. Lithuania has recorded 6,603 attempts to illegally cross the border since the beginning of the year.

In addition, 10 attempts to illegally cross the Belarus-Latvia border were recorded on September 13, VSAT said, quoting Latvian border guards.

The Polish Border Guard tweeted that 23 nationals of Yemen and Egypt tried to illegally enter from Belarus. It added that 11 foreigners crossed the border lake Szlamy by boat, with the support of Belarusian security services.

The migration crisis at the Belarusian-EU border dates back to the spring of 2021. It escalated on November 8, 2021, when thousands of migrants set up a camp near the Polish border. The Baltic states and Poland accused Belarusian authorities of creating the trouble at the border, while the latter blamed it on the West.

Migration figures had dropped significantly by the time Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, but have risen more recently.