Malta - Saba:
The European Union Asylum Agency, headquartered in Malta, announced a 12 percent decrease in the number of asylum applications submitted to the European Union countries, Norway and Switzerland during 2024, compared to the previous year.
The agency said in a statement last night: It recorded just over a million initial asylum applications in the 27 member states of the European Union, in addition to Norway and Switzerland, while the number in 2023 reached about 1.14 million applications.
Syria topped the list of countries sending the largest number of asylum applications at 15 percent, followed by Afghanistan at 8.7 percent.
According to the agency, Germany remains the main destination for refugees in the European Union, receiving far more asylum applications than other countries such as Spain, France and Italy.