A-five-year old boy accompanied by his migrant family drowned in the Una river in the night between Thursday and Friday when the family attempted to cross the river which forms the Bosnia-Croatia border.

The tragedy took place in the northwestern Bosnian municipality of Novi Grad. Local police said that the seven-member migrant family from Afghanistan included both parents and four other children, all of them minors, Croatian state agency Hina said.

According to local reports, the father was holding the boy in his arms while the family was trying to cross the river, only for him to fall into the cold river and drown. Hina did not report what happened with the rest of the family.

The district prosecutor’s office has launched an investigation into the case.

Northwestern Bosnia is on the so-called Balkan route, used by illegal migrants – originating mostly from the Middle East – to travel towards Western Europe. They hope to travel some 50 kilometers through Croatia to reach Slovenia, the closest country part of the EU’s passport-free travel Schengen Area.

However, many end up caught by Croatian border police who often push them back into Bosnia without giving them a chance to apply for asylum in Croatia, with many human rights organizations publishing reports of beatings and abuse over the past several years – allegations that Croatian police vehemently deny.