Brussels, Jan 17 (IANS): Some 380,000 irregular border crossings were detected at the European Union's (EU) external borders in 2023, a 17-per cent rise from a year earlier and the highest annual total since 2016, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) said.

Frontex said 2023 was the third consecutive year that the number of irregular border crossings into EU had grown, reports Xinhua news agency.

More than two out of five such crossings took place across the central Mediterranean route, with most of those departing from Tunisia and landing in Italy.

The nearly 158,000 arrivals via this route last year represented a 49-per cent increase compared to 2022.

The Western Balkan route accounted for 26 per cent of arrivals and the eastern Mediterranean route accounted for 16 per cent last year.

Most arrivals were adult men, Frontex said, whereas women and children took up 10 per cent respectively of the new arrivals.

The previous flood of irregular border crossings into the EU was reported in 2016, with nearly 504,000 new arrivals, according to Frontex data.