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Italian Alps: Crossing by night

Emma Wallis | Dany Mitzman
December 6, 2021

High up in the Italian Alps, ever more migrants are attempting to take remote and dangerous snowy paths through the mountains to evade police detection and reach France. Many stop for a day at volunteer refuges in towns like Oulx before taking a bus to the border at Claviere to begin the trek on foot in the dead of night.

https://p.dw.com/p/43u3e

High up in the Italian Alps, temperatures often drop below freezing. Migrants are given warm clothes and boots by volunteers who want to try and prevent more people from dying or getting injured on their journeys.

Reporter Dany Mitzman went to the Alps at the end of April 2021 to meet migrants who were trying to cross into France, as well as with the volunteers who try and make sure that their crossing is safe and without incident. She hears the stories of migrants, villagers and volunteers.

This episode was recorded at the end of April 2021.

Reporter: Dany Mitzman, Italy 

Presenter and Producer: Emma Wallis 

Editor: Marion MacGregor 

Series Editors: Charlotte Hauswedell and Sven Pöhle 

Studio production: Gerd Georgii and Jürgen Kuhn in DW studios 

Music: Chinese Man Records, France