Nine years ago, more than a million people crossed into Europe. Many of them took great risks and embarked on perilous journeys in an effort to escape conflict and find a better life.
But the sudden influx of people sparked a humanitarian and political crisis as Europe struggled to respond to the situation.
In this report, BBC correspondents, experts and people who made the trip reflect on that dramatic moment.
How did Europe change? How did they change the lives of those involved?
How it started: “I knew we had no future”
Lara Tahan, Syrian teacher: My life before the war in 2011 was very good. I was a math teacher in Aleppo with two children. But when the war started, I knew we had no future in the country. I used to drive to work and see dead bodies on the sides of the road. So I fled to Turkey, which was the easiest option back then.
Mark Lowen, Turkey correspondent from 2014 to 2019: The war in Syria put Turkey at the forefront of the migration issue. It borders Greece and Bulgaria, so in many ways it became the waiting room to get to the European Union. In 2015, there was a large flow of people from Syria to Turkey and then to Greece.
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Julian Miglierini, BBC reporter in Rome: In Italy, migration has been a big problem for years. Its proximity to North Africa made it a privileged destination for those wishing to take the risk of crossing the Mediterranean, and many people did.
Guy De Launey, Balkan correspondent: That summer in Serbia it was common to see people who had traveled from the Middle East on the streets. They took the Balkan route, which meandered north through Greece and North Macedonia on the way to countries like Germany.
Lara Tahan, Syrian teacher: My two sisters were already living in Germany. I realized that Turkey was not the future I was looking for me and my young children, so I decided to travel to Germany in search of better opportunities.
Jenny Hill, Berlin correspondent: Germany had taken in people fleeing war and persecution and had a reputation for being a hospitable country. When thousands of people arrived in early September 2015, a crowd greeted them with hand-painted signs and gifts for people getting off trains exhausted. They erupted in spontaneous applause and cheers. It was an extraordinary moment.
Lara Tahan, Syrian teacher: I arrived in Munich after a long and complicated journey. It was pouring rain! To me that was the first strange thing I noticed… Rain in the summer! But I met very nice people who welcomed the refugees very well.
Maddy Savage, Sweden Correspondent: At the same time, in Sweden, the mood was that this was one of the most welcoming countries in the world. There were people at the stations with banners that said “welcome refugees.” And a year earlier, the prime minister had given a speech calling on Swedes to open their hearts to migrants.
Samar Jaber, engineer from Jordan: At university they always talked about how Sweden received refugees, so I fled Jordan. I had no choice because my life was in danger. My sister was already in Sweden and we finally got together. When I arrived, I thought I was finally free.
“We’ll manage it,” Europe replies:
Guy De Launey, Balkan correspondent: The big change came when police in North Macedonia fired tear gas at people trying to cross the border into Greece. Authorities said they were overwhelmed. It seemed that Europe had suddenly become aware of a problem hidden at first glance.
Nick Thorpe, Central Europe correspondent: In Hungary, the government announced that it would erect a fence on its border. Police also sealed off Budapest’s main train station to prevent people from continuing the journey. But these measures caused people to turn to smugglers and illegality.
Bethany Bell, Austria correspondent: The bodies of dozens of migrants were found in a truck that had traveled from Hungary to Austria. It was a shocking moment that highlighted the problem of human trafficking and the desperation of those caught up in the crisis.
Jenny Hill, Berlin correspondent: Angela Merkel, like all of us, was horrified by the discovery of the truck. It seemed to have a profound impact on her. Just days later, he announced that Germany would accept 800,000 asylum seekers that year. And for the first time he used what would become his slogan: “Wir schaffen das”, “We will make it”.
Nick Thorpe, Central Europe correspondent: Merkel, in agreement with the Austrian chancellor, agreed to take in those who were trapped in Hungary. Thousands surrendered at Budapest station and left for Vienna. Hungary’s view was essentially: “If you want to take in these people, do it.”
Lara Tahan, Syrian teacher: After arriving in Munich, I went to two refugee camps before I was transferred to a small town in Hesse. We met Germans who wanted to help refugees integrate into us. They have supported me a lot at every stage and I still live there.
Jenny Hill, Berlin correspondent: Germany’s approach was to try to ensure that the new arrivals were distributed throughout the country so that no area was disproportionately affected. In reality, it was the mayors and local authorities who organized all the logistics. But they were supported by a remarkable volunteer movement.
Maddy Savage, Sweden correspondent: Immigrant families in Sweden often ended up in remote locations or in temporary accommodation that forced them to move from one place to another. And while openness to newcomers was the norm, that began to change as the pressure on resources became more apparent.
Guy De Launey, Balkan correspondent: Finally, the Balkan Route was declared closed in March 2016. That helped reduce the flow of people.
Mark Lowen, Turkey correspondent from 2014 to 2019: An agreement reached between the EU and Turkey a few weeks later proved to be very effective. Turkey would receive billions in EU aid in exchange for accepting Syrian refugees. That led to a massive decline in the number of migrants.
Work and housing: “They thought it would be paradise”
Samar Jaber, Engineer from Jordan: Sweden was very difficult at first and people tried to take advantage of me before I was granted refugee status. Now I have legal status and I want to use my degree, but I’ve noticed that they don’t accept foreign degrees here.
Maddy Savage, Sweden Correspondent: A lot of people thought Sweden would be paradise, but reality has presented more challenges than they expected. Even immigrants with high levels of education and excellent English have struggled to progress because their college degrees are not valid in the country.
Samar Jaber, Engineer from Jordan: I’ve applied for about 100 jobs and I’ve never been called in for an interview. So now I’m studying for a Swedish diploma. I want to build a future, I want to be independent, but it’s been six years and I have nothing.
Maddy Savage, Sweden correspondent: Housing and employment have been two of the biggest problems. Sweden has severe housing limitations in major cities. Unless for years the person has been on a waiting list for social housing, getting housing will depend on connections.
Jenny Phillimore, Professor of Migration Affairs: One of the legacies of 2015 is the innovative ways in which people have approached issues such as housing. In Hamburg and Bremen, in fact, they turned shipping containers into homes for immigrants. In Amsterdam, they built a “container city” that housed 50% Dutch youth and 50% refugees. But there are still problems.
Maddy Savage, Sweden correspondent: The unemployment rate for foreign-born citizens is 21.2%, compared to 5.5% for those born here. The goal is to keep newcomers out of black market work, and there has been debate about whether there should be looser rules that allow them to work more easily.
Samar Jaber, engineer from Jordan: You can’t feel stable. It seems like every time I do something I’m asked for something else! Do you think I want to stay home and not work? We all want to work. But there’s nothing.
Jenny Hill, Berlin correspondent: Germany has an aging population and some saw the newcomers as a response to the shortage of skilled workers: big companies like Siemens started offering apprenticeship contracts. But inevitably there were problems, and the issue of migration dominated the social debate for several years.
Political Fallout: “Compassion Fatigue Has Taken Root”
Jenny Hill, Berlin correspondent: Crimes committed by asylum seekers dominated the headlines. Attacks on young women in Cologne on New Year’s Eve 2015 by men who came, mostly from North Africa, fuelled anger, as did the terrorist attack at a Berlin Christmas market by a Tunisian man who had arrived in Europe as an asylum seeker.
Maddy Savage, Sweden correspondent: Crime has also become part of the immigration debate here. There have been high-profile incidents, but police say crime in certain high-immigration areas is coming not so much from newcomers as from criminal networks and gangs.
Jenny Hill, Berlin correspondent: There was a backlash against Merkel’s “We Will Make It” policy, and she soon abandoned the slogan as support for the anti-migrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) party grew. The “Flüchtlingspolitik” (refugee policy) polarized society.
Julian Miglierini, BBC reporter in Rome: In Italy, nationalists exploited the perceived lack of cooperation from the EU and other European countries during the crisis. They have expressed anti-immigrant sentiments and the message has resonated with many Italians. Since then, the nationalists have been successful in elections.
Daphne Halikiopoulou, Professor of European Politics: The trend that we have seen in Europe starting with the economic crisis and then continuing with the migrant crisis is the reduction of the political mainstream and the rise of nationalist policies.
Maddy Savage, Sweden correspondent: The nationalist Sweden Democrats have received more attention here since the crisis and have gained popularity. It has become more acceptable to express anti-immigration views, and the centre-left has introduced and even adopted as policy a cap on reception numbers.
Bethany Bell, Austria correspondent: The crisis has brought about a significant shift in Austrian politics. Opposing immigration has been a major issue for Chancellor Sebastian Kurz. His anti-immigrant message helped him win two elections and take votes away from the far right. It remains a key issue for his Conservative party.
Daphne Halikiopoulou, Professor of European Politics: The actual immigration figures often don’t correspond to people who vote for a particular party. What is more important is how voters perceive the crisis and how it presents itself. In this way, the parties have been able to influence in a way that they did not before.
Guy De Launey, Balkan correspondent: Some nationalist politicians have tried to use the crisis to build support. In general, sympathy for the plight of those coming via the Balkan Route seems to have waned. People are protesting against asylum centers, and compassion fatigue has taken hold.
Daphne Halikiopoulou, Professor of European Politics: We can understand the impact of the migration crisis mainly in terms of the opportunity it represented for [nationalist] parties to increase their support. And I think we’re going to continue to see these parties become more integrated into the political mainstream.
Schools and integration: ‘I want to build a life here’
Jenny Phillimore, Professor of Migration Affairs: Places like Sweden and Germany, which saw the highest number of arrivals, had a less organized approach to addressing integration. But there was a huge volunteer effort, which was one of the most positive things to come out of the situation.
Maddy Savage, Sweden correspondent: It’s still difficult for immigrants to move up the social ladder. Sooner rather than later, we will see how things play out for the children who came here and are approaching the age when they will enter the job market.
Jenny Phillimore, Professor of Migration Affairs: That will be the moment when Sweden knows whether its response has been a success or not. The country has an aging population, so suddenly receiving an injection of 40,000 young and capable people could become a huge success.
Jenny Hill, Berlin correspondent: In Germany, schools recruited more teachers and the training of people from other professions was accelerated to increase the number of people in teaching. Additional classes were arranged for children who did not share a common language.
Lara Tahan, Syrian teacher: My daughter is doing very well here at school. We are both fluent in German and have many friends. She’s ambitious, and I want her to do better than I do.
Jenny Hill, Berlin correspondent: Many of those who arrived have integrated, learned the language and built new lives here. It has by no means been a perfect process and there are still many problems, but hundreds of thousands of people, Syrians, Iraqis and many others, are putting down roots.
Mark Lowen, Turkey correspondent from 2014 to 2019: It has really changed the structure of Istanbul. Some streets have exclusively Syrian shops, restaurants, and cafes. And a lot of those Syrians want to stay in Turkey now because they’re settled and it’s a safe country.
Samar Jaber, an engineer from Jordan: Sweden is a very generous country. It has changed me. I used to be afraid of a lot of things, but now I feel different. I am preparing to study for a master’s degree and I hope to be able to fulfill my dreams.
Lara Tahan, Syrian teacher: I’m looking forward to receiving my German passport. We decided to come here to have a better life and to live with dignity and security. Our quality of life here is very good.
*Some names have been changed to protect people’s identities
