Young Brothers Vanish from Brussels Refugee Center, Raising Alarm

The disappearance of unaccompanied minors (UAMs) has been steadily increasing over the past five years. However, the case of the two brothers is very worrying, due to their young age, since usually 80% of those who disappear from the centers without authorization are aged 13 to 17, according to dhnet.

Child Focus indicated in its latest report published in May 2020 that there were 318 disappearances, including 113 new cases, whereas there were only 43 in 2014. For its part, the guardianship service for minors, under the FPS Justice, recorded more than 800 missing persons in 2019.

The scale of these disappearances is becoming very worrying for the Foundation for Missing and Sexually Exploited Children, which has also stated how difficult it is to find these children after their disappearance. Thus, during 2019, only 41% of the cases were closed. Due to the lack of resources, explains the Foundation, the police and other services concerned end their searches.