158,000 attempts for illegal entry into Bulgaria have been prevented by Border Police

From the beginning of the year until September 30,.2023, the border police have prevented more than 158,000 attempts of irregular migrants to enter the territory of Bulgaria illegally, DG Border Police said on October 10. It is possible that some of the persons who have independently returned to the interior of the Republic of Turkey, after having been detected by Bulgarian patrols along the border line, have made more than one attempt to cross into Bulgarian territory. During the same period last year, the number of thwarted attempts exceeded 115,000.

1,242 third-country nationals were detained for illegally entering Bulgaria in 2023. They are mainly from Syria - 629, Morocco - 200, Afghanistan - 199, Iraq - 80.

From 1 January to 30 September 2023, 1,968 third-country nationals were detained for attempting to cross the border illegally at the exit. Afghan, Syrian and Moroccan nationals account for the main share of detainees. The Bulgarian-Serbian border remained the most congested exit point during the period, where 88% of persons attempting to cross illegally were detained.

There was a 108% increase in the number of irregular migrants - 8,364 - detained in the interior of the country in June, July, August and September 2023. In the same period of 2022, they were 4,013. The number of pre-trial proceedings initiated against organisers of illegal migration has increased by 31%, and there are 15% more people accused of this criminal activity compared to the summer months of last year.