Human trafficking

Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya has engaged in a series of bilateral discussions with Greek Shipping and Island Policy Minister Christos Stylianidis, focusing primarily on addressing irregular migration in the Aegean Sea.

Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya has announced the arrest of 80 smuggling organizers and the apprehension of 2,155 irregular migrants in a series of operations conducted across 27 provinces within the first four days of the new year.

A plane that had been grounded in France for days over concerns its roughly 300 mostly Indian passengers were part of a human trafficking scheme landed in Mumbai early Tuesday.

The Airbus A340 initially had been bound for Nicaragua when it was detained last Thursday at Vatry airport, east of Paris, where it had stopped for refuelling.

Unknown assailants violently attempted to abduct a woman at the Elaionas toll station in Aigio, western Greece, on Thursday evening. Video footage captured by a passing driver reveals a man pulling the victim by her arms, another trying to seize her legs, while a third kept the vehicle door open.

The lure of a supposedly well-paid job and a decent life is frequently the perfect snare for thousands of women held in the clutches of human trafficking rings, from which only a small proportion will escape.

The United States has returned four antiquities worth $1 million to Nepal, including a pair of gilt copper masks representing a Hindu deity, following anti-trafficking operations, New York authorities said on Dec. 4.

Since the start of 2023, Bulgaria has seen a drastic surge in trafficking-related pre-trial proceedings, with 1,277 cases initiated, marking a staggering 60% increase compared to the same period in 2022. This revelation came from Interior Minister Kalin Stoyanov during a forum in Brussels.

The European Commission is expected to present its latest legislation on countering migrant smuggling in Brussels on Tuesday, which sets out a new "legal, operational and international cooperation framework."

In an interview with the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency, Chief Secretary Zhivko Kotsev of the Ministry of Internal Affairs reported a 3.7% decrease in overall crime compared to last year. Notably, crimes against persons, car thefts, and property theft have seen a decline, while crimes solved have increased by 3%.

Greece and Turkey said on Monday they had agreed to cooperate in the management of migration.