The subprefect of Timis County, Ovidiu Draganescu, said on Tuesday that the phenomenon of migration had gained momentum in recent years in the western part of the country, reaching a peak in 2021, when almost 75,000 people who attempted to enter the country illegally were stopped at the border by the policemen from the Timisoara Border Police Inspectorate (IPTF), which is in charge with the area that includes the Timis, Caras-Severin and Mehedinti counties.
"It's a phenomenon that gained momentum in 2020 and peaked in 2021. Nearly 75,000 people who wanted to cross the border illegally [into Serbia - editor's note] were stopped last year, compared to less than half of those recorded in 2020, and 6,170 persons, respectively, in 2019. This is an exponential increase in the last two years compared to what we had in 2017 - 2019. We acted in an integrated system (...) The border committee that finds these migrants on the territory of the country treats them as asylum seekers, and even as humanitarian cases," said Ovidiu Draganescu, during a press conference on the phenomenon of migration in the county.
However, more than 7,304 migrants managed to enter the country illegally last year, having been taken to the Timisoara Border Police headquarters. As many as 5,295 of them were found to be asylum seekers, 2,009 were found without documents, and 708 people were handed over to the Serbian authorities based on the readmission agreement.
The head of the Timis Public Health Directorate, dr. Flavius Cioca, explained that the institution was also overburdened by this, as it tested more than 5,000 people quarantined after entering the country from Serbia, and 44 cases of COVID were detected, Agerpres informs.