GP BiH: Twenty persons discovered in illegal crossing of the state border

Members of the Bijeljina Border Police Unit, in cooperation with officers of the Public Security Center of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Srpska, in the morning hours of February 25, 2017, discovered two groups of illegal migrants near the Rača International Border Crossing, the BiH Border Police announced.

Twenty persons of Afro-Asian origin were handed over to members of the Service for Foreigners' Affairs of BiH, who initiated the readmission process for persons prescribed by the Readmission Agreement with the Republic of Serbia.

In February 2017, in nine cases of illegal crossing of the state border, 13 citizens of Pakistan, five of Afghanistan, three of Syria, two of Algeria, and one citizen each of Iraq, Iran, and Palestine were discovered.

The BiH Border Police explains that Bosnia and Herzegovina, like its neighboring countries, is not exposed to mass migration pressure. The current situation in Serbia and Macedonia, where a larger number of migrants have been staying for a longer period, indicates possible migrant activities and the finding of alternative routes towards EU countries, which may include BiH. The last recorded cases in February 2017 indicate that migrants from countries of high migration risk, in individual cases and smaller groups, are trying to use the territory of BiH as a transit area on the way to EU countries, Patria writes.