More than 1,100 illegal border crossings over the past weekend, illegal migrants freely moving around Slovenia in broad daylight; Will Golob’s government finally take action?

By: A. S.

This year, Slovenia is facing an increase in illegal migrations, especially in the area of the Police Directorate Novo mesto and in the municipalities of Brežice and Krško. The removal of the fence on the southern border, initiated by the current left-wing government last year, resonated along the migrant Western Balkan route, sending a clear message to migrants to head towards Slovenia. This weekend, the migrant invasion reached its peak as police officers from Brežice and Krško caught a total of 1,075 illegal migrants in just a few days, from Friday, September 8^th, to Monday, September 11^th.

Among the apprehended illegal migrants, there were 480 Afghans, followed by 235 Moroccans, 100 Pakistanis, and 54 Bangladeshi citizens. Additionally, police officers caught 29 Syrian and Russian citizens each, 20 Algerians, 13 Indians, 12 migrants from Sri Lanka, 11 each from Iraq and Nepal, nine Burundian citizens, seven Iranians, four Palestinians, and four Sudanese citizens, three each from Eritrea and Congo, two Egyptians, two Tunisians, two Sierra Leoneans, and one each from Cameroon, Ghana, Lebanon, and Senegal.

In addition to apprehending illegal migrants who are entering our territory in large numbers and wandering around the country while asylum centres are overcrowded, the police are also dealing with continuous attempts to smuggle migrants.

On Friday, the police stopped a vehicle with Romanian plates in the Obrežje area, in which a 20-year-old Romanian citizen was “smuggling” sixteen Syrians. On Saturday, they again stopped a Romanian citizen who had seven illegal migrants from Syria and two from Iraq in his car. Near Čatež ob Savi, also on Saturday, the police stopped a vehicle with Croatian plates whose driver initially ignored the police and refused to stop. Behind the wheel was a Pakistani who was “smuggling” four Turks, of course, without the necessary documents to enter Slovenia. In the Drnovo area on the same day, the police caught a Romanian driver who was transporting four Turks in a car with Italian plates and attempted to escape from the police.

Although the majority of illegal border crossings occur in the area of the Novo Mesto Police Administration, Koper police officers also caught 64 illegal migrants over the weekend. Among other cases, they stopped a car with French plates in Petrinje, driven by a Russian citizen residing in France. He was transporting seven Russian citizens without the proper documents.