The EU will strengthen immigration controls in the face of an eventual increase in “radicalization” due to the war in Israel

2023-10-19 21:06:51

From Tunisia to Italy, passing through Sweden to return to Italy again and ending up living irregularly in Belgium. The itinerary followed by Abdessalem Lassooued, the alleged terrorist who this week murdered two Swedish citizens in the center of Brussels and who ended up shot dead by the police, has been given as an example this Thursday by the Interior Ministers of the European Union of because it is necessary tighten immigration controls, strengthen police cooperation and quickly deport those people who pose a danger for European internal security, particularly in the face of an eventual increase in “radicalization” and “polarization” following the escalation of the Middle East conflict.

“This terrorist in Brussels has been a warning. A Tunisian citizen who arrived in the EU 12 years ago, who has been here since 2011, without the right to be on EU territory, with asylum applications rejected several times. I understand that This is not the time to blame everyone but this is a warning sign.“, admitted the Commissioner for the Interior, Ylva Johansson, after the meeting of ministers held in Luxembourg. “It is essential to guarantee that the EU is safe, protected from terrorist threats. “We have to be sure that we do not have extremism, violent anti-Semitism, Islamophobia here, that all our citizens are safe and to achieve this we need more police cooperation,” she added.

A cooperation to which the Twenty-seven have committed. “We have analyzed the implications that the conflict (in the Middle East) may have on the internal security of the EU. We will strengthen internal security through strong police cooperation in the EU and with third countries, which already exists and is important,” explained the acting Spanish Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska. “There are specific places that may need a higher level of protection,” he added without specifying which ones. are those places but emphasizing that they carry out a constant evaluation of the risks.

Avoid radicalization

The Twenty-Seven has also spoken of the need to fight radicalization, “and against those who, protected by misinformation, fuel hate speech such as anti-Semitism, Islamophobia and racism.” A problem that, according to Brussels, affects increasingly younger people. “We are talking about an age group of 11 to 14 years, which is the age group most at risk of radicalization and it is something that requires measures,” said Johannson, who has also emphasized the need to urgently accelerate the return policy review to expel people who do not have the right to remain on European territory, particularly those who pose a threat to security.

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Although the rate of returns has increased by 20% this year, the level of people expelled compared to the percentage of negative decisions taken in the EU remains very low. “Member States have to cooperate better. We cannot afford to have 27 different return systems. We have to be more efficient“Johannson urged. “It must be an obligation for all of us,” acknowledged the Swedish Minister of the Interior, Gunnar Strommer, who together with his Belgian counterpart, Annelies Verlinden, has also demanded more exchange and cooperation between the security forces.

“I note that in both Belgium and France it was two people of foreign nationality who committed these attacks, so from now on we have to put into practice the migration pact that we have negotiated to take control of our borders and register people Let’s do the security interviews before considering any asylum application“, assessed the French Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin. As announced by Commissioner Johansson, Brussels has asked the European return coordinator to convene an “extraordinary meeting” this Friday to discuss with the Member States “how to guarantee that people who pose a security risk for the EU can return more quickly to their countries of origin”, something that, according to him, “has to be a priority”.