Over 1.2 million people applied for asylum in EU last year

More than 1.2 million people applied for asylum for the first time in the European Union last year, more than double the number in 2014.

The EU's statistics agency said Friday that most people applying in the 28 EU countries were Syrian, Iraqi or Afghan nationals. It said 362,800 Syrians applied for asylum.

More than a third – 441,800 people – applied for the first time in Germany. In per-capita terms, the most people applied in Hungary, Sweden, Austria and Finland. Only 140 people sought asylum in Croatia.

Eurostat's figures concern only first-time applicants in 2015. Almost half a million asylum applications were still being processed at the end of 2014.

[AP]