Border agency: Terror arrives in Europe through lax security
The European Union`s own border agency has officially classified the immigration tidal wave as a `major terrorism threat` for the first time.
Apr 7, 2016
By Nick Hudson
The European Union`s own border agency has officially classified the immigration tidal wave as a `major terrorism threat` for the first time.
In its annual risk analysis report, Frontex called for urgent checks to be enforced as soon as possible amid reports that members of the so-called Islamic State (Daesh) group, disguised as refugees, are taking advantage of loose border controls.
Officials warned a “staggering” number of European citizens had become jihadists and also admitted that a string of security blunders has led to a large number of people arriving in Greece and Italy with false documents.
It revealed a final total of 1.82 million people entered the continent illegally last year six times more than the previous record set in 2014.
The agency said it had no idea how many illegal migrants there were and, in any case, had no way of tracing their movements inside the EU.
Detailing the level of threat, the devastating report lifted the lid on a catalogue of failures and a surge in violence that culminated in last years attacks on Paris by Daesh.
The deaths of 130 people in the French capital in November clearly demonstrated that irregular migratory flows could be used by terrorists to enter the EU, it said.
The report states: Two of the terrorists involved in the attacks had previously irregularly entered through Leros and had been registered by the Greek authorities.
They presented fraudulent Syrian documents to speed up their registration process, the damning assessment concluded.
Syrian nationals accounted for the largest proportion of illegal arrivals, followed by Afghans and Iraqis.
Frontex has now called for more border screening and a clampdown on those giving false declarations about where they are from on arrival.
It added: False declarations of nationality are rife among nationals who are unlikely to obtain asylum in the EU, are liable to be returned to their country of origin or transit.
“With no thorough check or penalties in place for those making false declarations, there is a risk that some persons representing a security threat to the EU may be taking advantage of this situation,” read the report.
Frontex has also finally recognised that the unprecedented number of detections of illegal border-crossing has also led to a surge in violent incidents along the EUs external borders”.
It added: People smugglers, motivated by profit, increasingly put migrants lives at risk and even threaten border guards.
Justice Minister and Conservative Euro-sceptic Dominic Raab said: “This is a damning indictment by the very EU body charged with managing Europes external border.
“Frontex has set out all too starkly the risks, including from crime and terrorism, that the EUs free movement rules leave Britain wide open to.
“With no solution in sight, the safer option is for Britain to leave the EU in order to regain control over our borders and immigration policy.”
Meanwhile a ruling by EU judges that foreign crime suspects can not be deported automatically if they risk being imprisoned in degrading jail conditions abroad made another major talking point for the UK`s In/Out debate on its June 23 referendum.
Proposals aimed at getting to grips with the chaotic response to the migration crisis have been put forward by the European Union.
The EU commission wants to change the principle that requires refugees to claim asylum in the member state in which they first arrive.
EU Vic