[Published: Tuesday June 19 2018]
 Bosnia blocks migrants reaching EU member Croatia
SARAJEVO 19 Jun (ANA) - Bosnian border police have stopped about 100 refugees and migrants from reaching the border with Croatia, a member of the European Union, amid a rise in the influx of people heading through the Balkans towards Western Europe.
The group of people attempted on Monday to reach the border, but police reacted quickly by blocking the two roads that lead to the closed-down crossing, Al Jazeera's Josip Saric, reporting from Velika Kladusa in northwestern Bosnia, said.
Croatia also mobilised police on its side of the border, according to Anel Ramic, interior minister of the Bosnian northwestern Unsko-Sanski canton.
"Croatia sealed its borders," Ramic said at a news conference in the Bosnian town of Bihac.
The group had moved towards Croatia from the nearby town of Velika Kladusa. An estimated 3,000 refugees and migrants are currently spread across the area.
"Many have attempted to cross into Croatia and are turned back - sometimes, five, six or 10 times. But they don't give up; they keep trying," Al Jazeera's Saric said.
He added that there is frustration among residents in the small town of Velika Kladusa as an estimated 50-70 migrants continue to arrive daily.
"Residents aren't satisfied with today's situation. They are demanding from authorities a higher number of special police - not traffic police who have been dealing with this - and they're worried that these situations could happen again and could turn into something else."
The International Red Cross says the number of people migrating through the Balkans is on the rise and that they are in dire need of basic humanitarian support.
Authorities in Bosnia have struggled with the influx of thousands of people from the Middle East, Africa and Asia as many head there to avoid more heavily guarded routes through the Balkans in their bid to reach the EU.
Peter Van der Auweraert, from the International Organization for Migration, tweeted that the attempted group crossing on Monday was a "very worrying development" that risked creating a backlash.
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