‘Biggest wave of immigration since 1999’

Published on 11 October 2013 at 10:00

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Since April, 7,764 people — most of them Russians, Afghans and Syrians — have applied for asylum in Austria. In recent months, the flow of migration has reached its highest level since the war in Kosovo in 1999, points out Die Presse.

For the daily, the current situation has been prompted by the war in Syria. Since July, 1,336 people, mainly Syrians, have illegally crossed the Brenner Pass, between Austria and Italy, the principal route taken by migrants on their way to Austria. Having arrived in the country, many travel on to German or Sweden, which are thought to offer better prospects and to be more welcoming.

At the end of August, points out the newspaper, Vienna granted asylum to 500 Syrian refugees.

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