The administration in Hungary has recently released startling visuals depicting an increased use of firearms along its southern border adjoining Serbia. Recent months have witnessed escalating incidents of lethal confrontations between smugglers and deadly automobile accidents, making the migrant route via the Western Balkans into the European Union even more perilous. Despite the heightened risk, migration numbers are on a relentless climb.
A violent clash between rival factions last week resulted in at least three mortalities, assumed to be Afghan nationals. These fatal altercations occurred in abandoned agrarian structures in Serbia, mere yards away from Hungary’s border fence.
The recent surge in violence is attributed by authorities to a territorial tussle among Moroccan, Afghan, and Syrian groups who dominate access to the border fence along the southern frontier of Hungary with Serbia. The local residents in the Serbian border villages of Horgos and Hajdukovo and the city of Subotica are calling for peace and tranquility to be restored on the borders. Some are laying blame on the police from both nations, accusing them of conspiring with the smugglers.
The governments of Austria and Slovakia have lodged protests with their Hungarian counterparts over the increasing number of migrants reaching their borders via Hungary. This is notwithstanding Hungary’s fortified fence, daily detentions and forced return of migrants, and Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s tough stand against migration.
Sadar, a 33-year-old former Afghan army officer, paints a vivid picture of the grim conditions faced by migrants, some of whom are subjected to brutal treatment by the smugglers. Others, he says, display kindness by providing food and decent accommodations.
Migrants are continually making the perilous journey despite rising violence. The electrified razor-wire Hungarian fence has been instrumental not only in controlling border crossings but also in quashing individual initiatives. The introduction of automatic rifles and pistols from Kosovo has exponentially increased the risk factor.
An instance of gun violence last year resulted in casualties, with a 16-year-old girl killed and seven migrants injured during a gunfight reportedly between Moroccan and Afghan gangs. The recent shooting involved a Syrian-led group attacking an entrenched Afghan faction. It is primarily Syrians and Afghans crossing through northern Serbia, but other nationalities like Kurds and Pakistanis have been observed as well.
Law enforcement maintains that while smugglers are armed, migrants are not. However, there is a pervasive reluctance among the local populace to distinguish between traffickers and refugees, with the latter also finding themselves victims of this tumultuous situation.
Continual damage and breaches are inflicted on the fortified fence, with smugglers reportedly using a variety of power tools to cut significant gaps in the fencing. There is growing documentation of violent coercion by smugglers towards migrants being forced through the fence into Hungary, confirming Serbian reports of escalated violence being meted out by humans smugglers.
Reactionary violence against migrants has also been reported from Hungarian police and “border-hunters”, despite frequent denials from Hungarian authorities. The incriminating practice of pushing back detained migrants through a gate near Horgos contravenes international law, and Hungary has faced reprobation by the European Court of Justice for employing such measures.
Remnants of discarded, burnt-out cars used by smugglers line the Hungarian side of the border fence. However, these destructive practices aren’t limited to Hungary, with police reports in Austria documenting 70 incidents where smugglers have attempted to evade control measures. Austrian authorities attribute this to a new business model adopted by gang bosses, with drivers only receiving payment upon successful transit as opposed to a prior practice of advance payment.
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