The number of asylum applications in Europe plunged 87 percent in April, to the lowest level since 2008, due to lockdown measures imposed to fight the coronavirus, the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) said Thursday. "Only 8,730 asylum applications were registered... a record low in at least the past 12 years, and a massive decrease from pre-COVID-19 levels in January and February," it said in a statement, reporting on an area covering the European Union plus Norway and Switzerland. sjw/mlr/jv