Germany and the United Kingdom have taken measures aimed at closer cooperation when it comes to tackling human trafficking – notably making it easier to prosecute syndicates involved in the crossing of small boats into Britain.


Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser and Britain’s Yvette Cooper signed a joint action agreement on Monday aimed at combating the smuggling of migrants across the English Channel in rubber boats.


Earlier this year, a lengthy undercover investigation by the BBC shed light on the western German city of Essen and its alleged links to human trafficking across the English Channel.



What can be done against human smuggling from North Africa?


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Germany is going to change the law to tackle smugglers


Britain’s Home Office said in a statement that Berlin was committed to “clarifying their law by making it a criminal offense to facilitate the smuggling of migrants into Britain,” according to the joint agreement.


“This will give German prosecutors more tools to tackle the supply and storage of dangerous small boat equipment and allow the UK and Germany to better counter the ever-evolving tactics of people smuggling gangs,” Cooper said.


“Organized criminal gangs have exploited vulnerable people for too long, undermining border security in Britain and across Europe and putting thousands of lives at risk,” Home Secretary Cooper said.


German Interior Minister Faeser acknowledged that some of these human trafficking crimes are being planned from Germany.


“We are now intensifying our joint action to combat the brutal activities of international smugglers,” she said.


Faeser said the two countries would maintain “high investigative pressure,” along with the exchange of information between security services, while “continually investigating financial flows to identify the criminals operating behind the scenes.”



Starmer seeks European cooperation


British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has prioritized curbing irregular migration by targeting human trafficking syndicates.


In September he struck a deal with Italy’s Giorgia Meloni to work more closely and share intelligence.


According to British government statistics, 33,684 people had crossed the Channel by December 1 and arrived in Britain on small boats by 2024.


Dozens of migrants have died traveling in overcrowded rubber boats with the French Le Parisien newspaper reported at least 70 deaths at crossings this year.



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Raids on suspected smuggling syndicate in Germany


German authorities have launched raids against suspected people smugglers transporting migrants to Britain via France.


Last week, hundreds of officers flew to locations in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the southern state of Baden-Württemberg.


The raids were coordinated with Europol and French security services and targeted an alleged Iraqi Kurdish criminal network.


Europol said the suspects, all based in Germany, organized the purchase, storage and transport of inflatable boats to smuggle migrants from France to Britain.


kb/rmt (AFP, dpa, Reuters)



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