8 h. ago How Europe’s immigration crackdown is fuelling smuggling gangs – video

It has been 10 years since the migrant crisis began - when thousands of people fleeing war, persecution and poverty sought refuge in Europe. A decade later, migration remains one of the continent’s most divisive and politicised issues.Across Europe, anti-immigrant policies have hardened, physical border walls have gone up, and new barriers - both visible and invisible - continue to appear. As a result, migrants are forced on to ever more dangerous routes in search of safety. And the smuggling gangs that EU politicians claim to want to stop are growing more powerful than ever.The Guardian’s European community affairs correspondent, Ashifa Kassam, and video journalist Frances Rankin travel to the edges of ‘Fortress Europe’ to find out what 10 years of tightening migration policy means for people on the move today. Continue reading...

Events

4 d. ago Moment suspected people smuggler 'fakes' falling off small boat to evade suspicion from police

Astonishing footage captured by Sky News during an investigation into European human smuggling gangs shows a packed dinghy preparing to leave the shores of Dunkirk.

Events

8 d. ago British sniffer dog costs Channel smuggling gangs MILLIONS after tracking 76 small boats

The short-haired pointer has cost organised crime gangs millions in profits by helping to track down 76 illegal vessels on world's second busiest border between Bulgaria and Turkey

Economics

1 week ago Trump suggests he’s open to exempting Hungary from sanctions on Russian oil

US president also praises Viktor Orbán’s hardline stance on immigration during White House summitDonald Trump has suggested that he could exempt Hungary from sanctions on importing oil from Russia as he praised Viktor Orbán’s hardline stance on immigration during a cozy White House summit.Trump also called on European leaders to show more respect to the Hungarian prime minister, who has clashed repeatedly with fellow EU heads of government over issues of migration, democracy and rule of law. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Labour is offering £60k to tech whiz who can devise plan to stop drones flying into prisons

The number of incidents at prisons involving drones in England and Wales skyrocketed by over 770 per cent between 2019 and 2023, with the devices increasingly used by gangs to smuggle drugs.

Events

2 w. ago Concerns raised over planned second removal of Iranian who returned to UK on small boat

Exclusive: Lawyers tell Home Office about health issues of man who says smuggling gangs make it too dangerous for him to go back to FranceAn Iranian man who returned to the UK on a small boat after being sent back to France under the “one in, one out” scheme is facing his second removal on Wednesday despite mounting concerns about his vulnerability.He is being held in a UK immigration detention centre and receiving hourly welfare checks by staff because of concerns about his mental health. He claims to be a victim of modern slavery at the hands of smugglers in northern France. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago How the European convention on human rights became a battleground between the centre and the right | Daniel Trilling

For 20 years, populists have been blaming the ECHR for endangering Britain by offering basic protections to immigrantsIn the latest series of Blue Lights, the BBC drama about police officers in Belfast, there’s a scene where a constable insists on staying with a mentally ill man until a nurse arrives. “This is an article two issue,” the officer tells his colleague – by which he means that under article two of the European convention on human rights (ECHR), incorporated into UK law by the 1998 Human Rights Act, the state has a duty to protect life. It is an uncontroversial example of how the ECHR, which turns 75 this week, has found its way into everyday life across the UK.In Westminster, withdrawal from the ECHR has become a new rallying cry for the right, which claims it is the solution to unauthorised migration. In early October, Kemi Badenoch’s Conservatives said they want to take the UK out of the convention if they win the next election. Last week, MPs voted down a largely symb...

Events

3 w. ago Thousands of families hit by pause of lifeline refugee visa route as scale of crackdown revealed

Exclusive: More than 6,000 children will be hit by shutdown after Labour said route was being manipulated by people-smuggling gangs

Events

3 w. ago Alleged IS fanatics laughed as they discussed forming 'terrorist gang' during gun smuggling recce to Dover, jurors are told

Tunisia-born former restaurateur Walid Saadaoui and Iraq-raised Amar Hussein were unaware their conversation was being recorded by an undercover operative posing as a jihadi, jurors have been told

Events

4 w. ago Drugs gang who smuggled £68million worth of cocaine into the UK in gas bottles are locked up for total of 141 years

The 16-strong syndicate began importing vast amounts of the drug in 2020, 'flooding' the streets of the North East.

Economics

last month Russian spies 'linked to smuggling gangs trafficking migrants across English Channel'

Bulgaria’s Home Secretary claims his government has evidence of direct links between Russia’s foreign intelligence agency and the organised crime gangs helping people to cross Europe illegally

Events

last month Russian spies 'are helping gangs smuggle illegal migrants into Europe'

Daniel Mitov, the Bulgarian home secretary, said his government had evidence of direct links between Russia's foreign intelligence agency and the criminal operations. Pictured: File photo

Events