Requests in Italy for international protection this year have soared by 74 percent from the same period of 2014 to reach 42,801, Italy's interior minister Angelino Alfano said on Wednesday.
Over half these requests (51 percent) have been rejected, while five percent of migrants who requested asylum obtained refugee status and 16 percent other forms of protection, Alfano said.
Over 330,000 migrants reached Europe by sea in the first eight months of the year, including 120,000 in Italy 210,000 in Greece according to data cited by the Paris-based think-tank the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development last week.
Over 330,000 migrants reached Europe by sea in the first eight months of the year, including 210,000 in Greece and 120,000 in Italy, according to the latest data cited by OECD.
Half a million illegal border crossings were detected in the same period, almost double the level during the whole of 2014, the Paris-based think-tank reported.
Europe is facing the largest migration wave seen since World War II. A record one million people will seek refuge in Europe this year, fleeing conflict and poverty in the Middle East, Africa and Asia, according to OECD.
