ZAGREB (AFP) – At least 10 people were injured after a van carrying illegal migrants crashed in eastern Croatia yesterday after a police chase, according to authorities.
A police patrol near the village of Malino close to the Bosnian border noticed a “visibly overloaded van… that they tried to stop”, police said.
But the driver ignored them and attempted to speed off. The van later came off the road and crashed into a pole.
Police did not provide details about the identities of the migrants but said 10 were injured and taken to hospital.
The state-run HINA news agency said 14 were injured including seven children.
The incident comes two weeks after 12 migrants died when their boat capsized as they tried to cross a river between Bosnia and Serbia.
European Union-member Croatia has long been a major transit country for illegal migrants travelling on the so-called Balkan route hoping to enter Europe, with most passing through neighbouring Bosnia.
According to the bloc’s border agency Frontex, nearly 100,000 Europe-bound migrants took the Balkan route last year to enter the EU.
