More unaccompanied children are taking dangerous crossings to Europe, UN says
UN agencies said 67% of child arrivals traveled alone, and nearly half of surveyed young migrants reported physical violence on key routes.
- A joint report from United Nations agencies released Wednesday shows 31,100 children arrived in Europe in 2025, with 20,800 traveling alone despite a 25% overall drop in total arrivals from 2024.
- IOM Director General Amy Pope said the report showed "how exposed they are to violence and exploitation when safe pathways are limited and they have to rely on smugglers." Poverty and conflict drive the crossings.
- Interviews with more than 4,600 young travelers found nearly half experienced physical violence. On the Central Mediterranean route, 28% reported being held against their will and 17% forced to work.
- Italy and Spain recorded the highest concentrations of unaccompanied minors, with 86% of children arriving in those countries doing so without a parent or guardian.
- These findings emerge four months into the European bloc's new asylum rulebook, which began applying on June 12, 2026, keeping unaccompanied children out of accelerated border procedures.
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31 Articles
A joint United Nations assessment revealed today, Wednesday, that two thirds of migrant children arrived in Europe alone in 2025, making them vulnerable to the exploitation of smugglers.
Most of the migrant children who arrived in Europe through the main migration routes in 2025 were unaccompanied by their parents or guardians, according to a report released this Wednesday by the United Nations. The study reveals that of the 31.1 thousand minors who landed on the continent throughout the year, more than 20,000 carried out the crossing alone at risk of suffering some kind of violence, exploitation and trafficking in persons.
Limited safe routes leave children exposed to smugglers, violence, exploitation, says head of International Organization for Migration
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