Mali. Visit to Bamako by Mahamat DÉBY, Head of the Transitional Council of Chad

The Head of the Transitional Council of Chad, Mahamat DÉBY, current President of the G5 for the Sahel, will visit Bamako at the end of November to meet Malian President Assimi GOITA. 

At the center of the talks between the two there are also relationships between Mali and Russia, in particular the possibility, repeatedly mentioned by the international media, that Bamako will start a collaboration with the private security company WAGNER. 

In this sense, one of the objectives of DÉBY's visit would be to undermine this collaboration,  not formalized by the parties yet, and avert a crisis with the other G5 countries, Burkina Faso, Mauritania, Niger and precisely Chad.

The role of WAGNER in the Sahel and the problems connected to it have also been the subject of recent talks held in Paris between Mahamat DÉBY himself, the President of Burkina Faso, Roch Marc Christian KABORÉ, the President of Niger, Mohamed BAZOUM, and the French President Emmanuel MACRON.

Norwegian Intelligence Focused on the Smuggling of Child Asylum-seekers

(July 8, 2016) - Considering the big numbers arriving in Norway last year, the Norwegian Intelligence Service (NIS) has focused its attention on the smuggling of child asylum-seekers into Norway and shared its findings with the Europol that now considers illegal immigration as one of nine areas of high priority.

Based on the different travel patterns, Norwegian Intelligence Service (NIS) identified three main categories of how asylum seekers make it to Norway as their final destination of choice. 

The smallest group: they get a travel package from their country to Norway

This group is the smallest because this method is the most expensive. A trip from Kabul to Germany could cost up to $22,000. Refugees who can afford to have documents and go this route are guaranteed a safe arrival to their destination, but costs vary and are increasing due to the heightened border controls. 

The largest group: those who get to Norway from Europe on their own

This group is smuggled into Schengen areas through smugglers they find on social network pages like Facebook. Once in Europe, they try to continue their journey to Norway on their own. Norwegian Intelligence Service (NIS) report pointed out that, “aid organizations and others who help refugees often putting unaccompanied minors together with adults. Then they are carried onward with the flow in a natural way.” 

The medium-sized group: Those that are smuggled in stages

This group takes the longest to reach its destination because they are forced to cross several countries before they reach a Schengen area. Once in Europe, they identify “hotspots” in large European cities like the train station in Berlin from where they are picked up by smugglers, family members, or acquaintances. Norwegian Intelligence Service (NIS) reported that it is common for people in this category to work along the way in order to pay off their debts to their smugglers. At times, they are assigned a group of migrants to take along with them on their journey, thereby turning into human smugglers themselves.

The actual means of transportation varies; some children reported traveling across the Mediterranean on inflatable boats while others spoke of their nights in Balkan forests or small containers. According to a report by Norwegian Intelligence Service (NIS) last week, most asylum seekers come via Sweden, and despite the tight border controls, the bus and train are the most common means of transportation.