50 smugglers arrested and more than 7 thousand illegal immigrants in an operation in 14 European countries

From 11 to 21 September, Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard, together with Austria, led an international operation against serious and organized cross-border crime in Central and Southeastern Europe.

In particular, the authorities in Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Republic of Northern Macedonia, Montenegro and , with the support of Europol and Interpol, arrested 50 suspected smugglers, identified 7248 illegal immigrants, 83 forged documents, 17 stolen and 20.000 surgical masks.

The operation was part of the EU / EMPACT, a four-year plan to combat serious and organized crime, bringing together the police and law enforcement authorities of EU Member States, European and international organizations to jointly strengthen borders and Europe 's internal security.

The operation, known as Joint Action Day (JAD) Danube 5, was the first day of joint action organized by Frontex under conditions COVID-19 and the first such international operation this year, which "proves that the organization is able to provide ongoing operational support to EU Member States even in the most difficult situations".