A van carrying dozens of migrants overturns in southeastern Serbia, injuring more than 20

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — A van carrying more than 30 migrants overturned on Wednesday in southeastern Serbia, in the second such accident in days, state RTS television reported.

The accident happened near the town of Bela Palanka, on the road leading from Pirot, near the Bulgarian border, toward Nis, in southern Serbia, the report said. Another van carrying some 50 migrants overturned in the same spot last week.

Dozens of people were injured in both incidents. The RTS report said at least 20 were hurt on Wednesday, some of them seriously.

Serbia lies on the so-called Balkan land route of migration, where people smugglers often facilitate illegal border crossings for people seeking to reach Western Europe.

Migrants come to Serbia from Bulgaria or North Macedonia and then travel north and west toward Hungary or Croatia, often crammed in vans or cars.

___

Follow AP’s global migration coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/migration