Police in Germany and France conducted dawn raids as part of an international operation targeting a network accused of smuggling migrants to Britain in small boats. The raids, coordinated with Europol, French security services, and British police, focused on western German cities where gangs were allegedly procuring small boats to transport migrants from France to the UK. The network of Iraqi Kurds, some living in asylum seeker shelters in North Rhine-Westphalia, was accused of smuggling migrants from the Middle East and East Africa.
Over 500 officers took part in the operation, which led to 10 international arrest warrants being connected to locations in Germany and France. The raids were led by Germany’s GSG 9 special forces unit and involved collaboration with French and British investigators, as well as Europol. Previous raids in February targeted another Iraqi-Kurdish smuggling network based in Germany.
The smuggling of migrants via small boats from France to Britain has been on the rise since 2019, with an estimated 30,000 migrants reaching the UK in 2021. German federal police have launched investigations into over 4,400 human smuggling suspects, with concerns growing over the exploitation of migrants, particularly in light of the conflict in Syria.
These developments have put pressure on German politicians to address illegal migration, which is a key issue ahead of upcoming elections. The heightened risk of exploitation by human smugglers underscores the need for international cooperation to combat this criminal activity and protect vulnerable migrants.
Source
Photo credit www.theguardian.com
