Fri 12 June 2026:

Pope Leo XIV on Friday highlighted the role of migration in fostering encounter and mutual enrichment among peoples during the final leg of his visit to Spain’s Canary Islands.

“Migration has an important message to communicate, because it can become an opportunity for encounter and for mutual enrichment between peoples,” the pope said during a meeting with migrants at the Las Raices Center in Tenerife.

He called on migrants to share the treasure of humanity and cultures they had brought with them while remaining open to what is offered by their host communities.

“We must live this responsibly, thinking of the future of the generations to come, to whom we wish to pass on a legacy of a civilization of love,” he said.

Pope Leo XIV meeting African migrants in Tenerife. pic.twitter.com/Fluvvq4aXJ

— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) June 12, 2026

“It is providential that we are able to meet, see one another, and above all know that beyond our origins, God’s love knows no borders, makes no distinctions, gives itself to all, and brings us together in unity,” the pontiff added.

He further thanked the government, institutions, and volunteers for their cooperation in making such humanitarian aid possible, “restoring hope and dignity to those concerned.”

__________________________________________________________________________

https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaAtNxX8fewmiFmN7N22

__________________________________________________________________________

Irregular crossings into EU fall 40% in early 2026

Irregular border crossings into the EU fell by almost 40% in the first five months of 2026 compared with a year earlier, according to preliminary data published on Friday by Frontex, the EU’s border and coast guard agency.

The agency said around 39,000 crossings were recorded during the January-May period.

Frontex said the decline was linked to cooperation with partner countries and preventive measures in key departure states.

The figures came as the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum entered into force on Friday, introducing a standardized screening system at the bloc’s external borders.

Frontex Executive Director Hans Leijtens said the new rules would apply “the same standard” to all arrivals at EU borders, adding that the pact would unify “27 different ways of doing things.”

The agency said the Central and Eastern Mediterranean routes remained the busiest, while the Western African route saw the steepest drop, down 71%.

It added that crossings via the Western Mediterranean rose 46%, driven mainly by departures from Algeria.

Frontex said nearly 1,300 people have died in the Mediterranean so far this year, according to the International Organization for Migration.

-Source: AA

__________________________________________________________________________

FOLLOW INDEPENDENT PRESS:

WhatsApp CHANNEL
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaAtNxX8fewmiFmN7N22