Possibility of terrorists penetrating Europe as migrants 'being strongly felt' - minister

The possibility of determined terrorists penetrating Europe’s frontiers as hapless migrants, taking advantage of the networks operated by criminal organisations is being felt strongly, Home Affairs Minister Manuel Mallia said today. Speaking at the 83rd Interpol general assembly, Dr Mallia said that while modern technological developments were one factor which had given opportunistic criminals new openings, the age-old practice of human trafficking for profit had also seen criminal activity burgeoning as a result of increased migration flows away from war zones, towards better economic prospects, or a combination of both. In the Mediterranean, international criminal organisations took over this lucrative trade, taking advantage of the despair faced by large numbers of people. “Besides the innate heinousness of this modern equivalent of the slave trade, this flow of people into the southern borders of Europe is also posing a major security threat,” he said. Dr Mallia said international co-operation combating this should go beyond the ‘policing of borders’, and move on to real policing. “We have come to consider policing of borders to be merely patrol operations, very often ending...