UK summit targets Kurdish people-smuggler bosses
Britain and Iraq will directly target people-smuggling gang bosses, it has been announced at the first international summit on migration. Illegal immigration was a 'global security threat similar to terrorism', UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer declared at the London meeting where money was pledged to help take down criminal kingpins, such as mastermind smuggler 'Bakhtiar', exposed in a special investigation by The National this month. His base in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region will likely be one of many examined at the Organised Immigration Crime Summit of 44 countries holding their inaugural meeting in London on Monday. The UK Home Office confirmed to The National that an extra £1 million ($1.3 million) will be used to help British investigators track down gang kingpins in Iraq. Such plans have already proved successful, with Mr Starmer citing a 'major operation' by French, German and British law enforcement that 'smashed an Iraqi smuggling network, with multiple arrests and the seizure of dozens of boats and engines'. Opening the conference on Monday, he said resources must be combined to tackle the problem 'at every step of the smuggling journey' from North Africa and the Middle East. Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, who has previously visited Iraq to discuss people smuggling, said the international task force would go to 'source countries' to root out the problem. The National named Bakhtiar as the mastermind of an international people-smuggling network who had gone into hiding after a crackdown on the trade in the Kurdistan region. His operation was centred on a web of money-exchange outlets in the lakeside town of Ranya, 130km from Sulaymaniyah, that are used to arrange illegal journeys from Iraq to the far side of Europe. Mr Starmer told ministers, including some from Iraq, the Kurdish regional government, the US, China and Albania, that illegal migration was a 'massive driver of global insecurity' in which the vulnerable are exploited by 'vile gangs'. 'It pits nations against one another and profits from our inability at the political level to come together,' he added. But now there was the gathering of countries to build a 'truly international effort to defeat organised immigration crime', he said. He also announced that Britain will pay foreign prosecutors to track down smugglers across the world. With a £33 million fund, he will set up an international squad from the Crown Prosecution Service to go after criminal gangs that send thousands of migrants across Europe into Britain each year. The migration issue has played a significant role in recent British politics, with many voters turning to hard-right parties such as Nigel Farage's Reform after an increase in asylum seekers from around the world in some British towns and cities. While Mr Starmer admitted there was no 'silver bullet' to stop people smuggling, 'multiple levers' would be used to combat the trend, such as a new law to seize immigrants' phones when they arrive to gather intelligence on smugglers, as well as taking down thousands of social media accounts that facilitate the business. Senior figures from social media companies including X, Meta and TikTok are attending the two-day summit to help tackle the problem. The Home Office announced that new National Crime Agency investigators will go after smugglers' finances, supply chains and trafficking routes across Europe, the western Balkans, Asia and Africa. Mr Starmer promised to take the same approach to smugglers as he did when he was head of the Crown Prosecution Service between 2008 and 2013 when he prosecuted Al Qaeda terrorists. 'We need to treat people smuggling as a global security threat, similar to terrorism,' he said. 'We've got to bring to bear all the powers we have at our disposal in much the same way that we do against terrorism.' Mr Starmer will hope international co-operation will have more success than his predecessor Rishi Sunak's £700 million 'Stop the Boats' campaign to deport illegal asylum seekers to Rwanda. Only four were taken to the African country under the scheme, all of them voluntarily. Investigation: Hunting trafficking's big boss inside Kurdistan's smuggling hotspot Underground: Kurdish trafficker sending migrants to Europe in hiding after crackdown Podcast: Are UK crackdowns deterring Iraqi Kurdish smugglers?
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Middle East Eye
18 minutes ago
- Middle East Eye
Seizure of Madleen is the latest in more than a decade of Israeli attacks on aid flotillas
Israeli forces seized control of the Madleen aid vessel aiming to break the blockade of the Gaza Strip on Monday morning - the latest of many such Israeli interceptions over the past decade and a half. The British-flagged Madleen, which is operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), was seeking to deliver a symbolic amount of humanitarian aid, including rice and baby formula, and raise international awareness of the humanitarian crisis there. However, the boat was intercepted in the early hours of Monday before it could reach Gaza, the FFC said on its Telegram account. Israeli authorities detained its crew of 12, including Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and French politician Rima Hassan. Before their arrest, crew aboard the FFC had said that quadcopters surrounded the vessel and sprayed it with a "white liquid". New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters It's the latest instance of years of Israeli attacks on FFC-organised aid vessels attempting to break Israel's 18-year air, naval and land blockade on the Palestinian territory. The FFC says that it is governed by the principles of non-violent resistance. The coalition includes member organisations from several countries, including Canada, Italy, Malaysia, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, the US, Ireland, Brazil, Australia and France. Middle East Eye takes a look at the history of Israeli attacks on FFC flotillas. Decade and half of Israeli attacks The coalition first came together in 2010, after Israeli forces boarded a Freedom Flotilla mission in May that year and killed 1o activists. The Mavi Marmara mission had been organised by the Free Gaza Movement and Turkey's IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation. The ship set sail on 22 May from Sarayburnu port, Istanbul, in an attempt to breach the Israeli blockade on Gaza. A week later, in the Mediterranean Sea south of Cyprus, it joined the rest of the aid flotilla, comprising three passenger and three cargo ships carrying essential humanitarian aid and 700 activists. But on 31 May 2010, despite being in international waters, Israeli troops violently boarded the Mavi Marmara vessel using helicopters and speedboats. Nine people were killed instantly, while another later died as a result of his wounds. The incident became a major international story, with Israel's actions receiving strong condemnations. Following the 2010 mission, the FFC was created to bring together and coordinate various campaigns from around the world seeking to break Israel's siege. A subsequent mission in 2011, named "Freedom Flotilla II - Stay Human", was due to set sail towards Gaza on 5 July. However, the vast majority of vessels in the flotilla were unable to depart. Organisers said that Israel had sabotaged two of the ships set to depart from Turkey and Greece. One of the vessels, organised by an Irish group, was not allowed to leave the port after Greek authorities cited safety concerns. The only aid ship that managed to get near Gaza, the French vessel Dignite al-Karama, was intercepted by Israeli authorities. Greta Thunberg aboard Gaza flotilla: Doing nothing 'is not an option' Read More » Freedom Flotilla III, which left Sweden on 10 May 2015, was again intercepted by Israeli authorities in international waters a month and a half after setting sail. One of the boats, named Marianne, was forced by Israeli troops to turn towards the city of Ashdod, in southern Israel. Other vessels also turned back. Among those on Marianne were lawmaker Basel Ghattas, a Palestinian citizen of Israel, and Moncef Marzouki, the former president of Tunisia. The following year, the FFC organised the Women's Boat to Gaza, a single ship with an entirely female crew. It set sail from Barcelona on 14 September 2016, but two weeks later, on 5 October, was seized by Israeli forces. The entirety of the all-female crew - which included journalists, actors, politicians and even a Nobel Peace Prize winner - were arrested by Israeli troops, who took them to Ashdod. All of them were subsequently deported. Another mission, which set sail in May 2017 in solidarity with Gaza fishermen, was attacked by a suspected Israeli drone in international waters near Malta. In July the following year, Israeli forces stopped al-Awda, a Norwegian flagged fishing boat that was part of the coalition. All 22 people on board were arrested and taken to Ashdod. In 2023 and 2024, the ship Handala, which focused on the children of Gaza, set sail to several destinations in Europe to educate people about Israel's siege and war on Gaza. Last month, another vessel organised by the FFC, the Conscience, failed to continue its journey after being struck by an Israeli drone near Maltese waters.
Middle East Eye
2 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
Exclusive: David Cameron threatened to withdraw UK from ICC over Israel war crimes probe
The British government privately threatened to defund and withdraw from the International Criminal Court if it issued arrest warrants for Israeli leaders, Middle East Eye can reveal. David Cameron, then foreign secretary in Rishi Sunak's Conservative government, made the threat last April in a heated phone call with Karim Khan, the British chief prosecutor of the court. Less than a month later, Khan announced that he was seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his then-defence minister, Yoav Gallant, as well as for Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar, Ismail Haniyeh and Mohammed Deif. In a statement at the time, Khan called for his office and the court to be allowed to carry out their work with 'full independence and impartiality'. 'I insist that all attempts to impede, intimidate or improperly influence the officials of this Court must cease immediately,' he said. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters MEE understands that on 16 March 2024, Khan's extensive team of lawyers and researchers had decided they would be in a position to apply for warrants by the end of April. On 25 March, Khan informed the US administration of his decision and forewarned them the warrants would be applied for by the end of April. Then on 15 April in London, the prosecutor told British Justice Secretary Alex Chalk that he would apply for the warrants. Khan had asked to meet the foreign secretary, but Cameron was out of the country. Exclusive: UK believes Trump may sanction Amal Clooney over ICC Palestine role Read More » Cameron, a former British prime minister who was appointed foreign secretary by Sunak in November 2023, phoned Khan while the prosecutor was on an official visit to Venezuela on 23 April. MEE can reveal details of the call based on information from a number of sources – including former staff in Khan's office familiar with the conversation and who have seen the minutes of the meeting. Cameron told Khan that applying for warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant would be 'like dropping a hydrogen bomb'. Cameron said it was one thing to investigate and prosecute Russia for a 'war of aggression' on Ukraine, but quite another to prosecute Israel when it was 'defending itself from the attacks of 7 October'. He claimed the warrants would have 'profound implications' in Britain and within his own Conservative Party. Cameron then said that if the ICC issued warrants for Israeli leaders, the UK would 'defund the court and withdraw from the Rome Statute'. Article 127 of the Rome Statute, the ICC's founding charter, allows countries to withdraw by written notification to the secretary-general of the UN. 'Lose the dressing room' Cameron, who currently sits as a Conservative peer in the House of Lords, the upper house of the UK parliament, accused the prosecutor of singling Israel out. He asked why Khan's office had not 'prosecuted Iran for its attacks on Israel'. He told the prosecutor he would 'lose the dressing room' and be seen by many states including the US as 'losing the plot'. 'If [the UK] were to [withdraw from the ICC], we would have to accept that the rules-based system would be dead' - ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan Cameron further said that if the ICC issued the warrants, the UK would be 'required to arrest' Netanyahu if he travelled to the country. Khan told Cameron that his office had engaged with Israel for the past three years, but it had 'not resulted in any meaningful exchange of material relevant to investigations'. According to MEE's sources, the foreign secretary spoke aggressively and repeatedly shouted over Khan, who had to ask to be able to complete his points. The prosecutor noted that his office was investigating crimes committed by Hamas as well as Israel, but Cameron said this was drawing a 'moral equivalence' between the two. He stated again that the UK would withdraw from the Rome Statute. Khan replied that 'if this were to occur then we would have to accept that the rules-based system would be dead'. Cameron insisted that 'the world is not ready for this'. He told Khan he was 'on the brink of making a huge mistake. You sometimes need to take a step back and consider things'. But Khan refused to back down and continued defending his position. He said there was a 'serious risk' that many in the world would view the rules-based order as 'not being applied equally'. Khan thanked the foreign secretary for his call and the conversation ended without the two reaching any resolution. Approached by MEE for a response to the exchange with Cameron, Khan said: 'I have no comment to make at this time.' MEE has asked Cameron and the British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office for comment. Cameron: Warrants 'a mistake' When Khan announced he was applying for the warrants on 20 May, Cameron publicly called the decision 'a mistake' and accused the ICC of drawing a 'moral equivalence' between Israeli and Hamas leaders. He claimed that 'no one, I think, has been tougher on the Israelis than me in direct call after call, and message after message, about having to meet their obligations'. On 10 June the Conservative government filed an objection to Khan's application to the ICC, arguing that the court did not have jurisdiction over Israeli nationals – a position the Israeli government has held for years. The next month, Keir Starmer's newly elected Labour government announced it would drop the objection. 'We're very clear about the importance of the rule of law and the independence of the court both domestically and internationally,' a spokesperson for Starmer said. Palestine was accepted into the ICC in 2015, and in 2021 the court said it had the power to investigate war crimes in the occupied territories. 'I don't like being threatened' Sources Khan spoke to in the hours following his phone call with Cameron told MEE he seemed surprised and upset by the exchange. 'I don't like being pressurised,' Khan said, according to sources present at the time. 'I don't like being - I won't say if it rises to blackmail - I don't like being threatened.' ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan attends a UN Security Council meeting on Sudan and South Sudan at the UN headquarters on 27 January 2025 (AFP) Khan added that 'the sentiment is not unexpected". 'The gall of articulating it so bluntly and candidly I think was a surprise and a disappointment… countries that you love, that deserve better, how on earth can leaders that have held such high office, that are so well known, think you can get away with that?' The British prosecutor added that 'if you did that to a director of public prosecutions… it would be a criminal offence, potentially'. He said he was 'disappointed that a country like that and leaders that are so senior would debase themselves and their nation. 'They have no right to debase a nation… they're debasing something they have no right to debase, which is a people.' 'I don't like being threatened... How on earth can leaders that have held such high office, that are so well known, think you can get away with that?' - Karim Khan Sunak's government firmly supported Israel's war on Gaza and consistently resisted calls to restrict arms sales to Israel. In a session of parliament's foreign affairs select committee in January 2024, its chair Alicia Kearns, a Conservative MP, asked Cameron whether 'you have never had a piece of paper put in front of you by a Foreign Office lawyer that says that Israel is in breach of its international humanitarian commitments under international humanitarian law'. Cameron replied that 'I cannot recall every single bit of paper that has been put in front of me … I don't want to answer that question.' He added that 'if you are asking me whether I am worried that Israel has taken action that might be in breach of international law … yes, of course I am worried about that.' In March the Guardian reported that Kearns said she believed the government had received advice from its own lawyers saying Israel had breached international law in Gaza. 'I remain convinced the government has completed its updated assessment on whether Israel is demonstrating a commitment to international humanitarian law, and that it has concluded that Israel is not demonstrating this commitment, which is the legal determination it has to make,' Kearns said at a fundraising event on 13 March. Khan sanctioned by US The Labour government, elected in July, imposed a partial arms embargo on Israel that September and suspended free trade agreement talks with the country last month. Speaking during Prime Minister's Questions last week, Starmer described Israel's actions in Gaza as 'appalling... counterproductive and intolerable,' and said the government would keep looking at further action including sanctions. But it has stopped short of accusing Israel of breaking international law in Gaza. After the ICC issued the arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant in November, the government refused to explicitly confirm it would arrest the politicians if they came to the country, although a spokesperson for Starmer said the government would 'fulfil its legal obligations'. Other Israeli officials, who are not subject to arrest warrants, have since visited the UK. In April, MEE reported that Foreign Minister Gideon Saar made a secret trip to London and met British Foreign Secretary David Lammy. After the report, the attorney general's office confirmed to MEE that it had blocked an arrest warrant request made to the Metropolitan Police by legal groups alleging Saar had aided and abetted breaches of international law in Gaza. Exclusive: US warns UK and France not to recognise Palestinian state Read More » Khan is currently on leave after attempts to suspend him failed, and pending a UN investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct towards a colleague. He denies the allegations, which have not been referred to Dutch police. In 2022 the Russian Federation issued a warrant for Khan's arrest in response to ICC warrants issued against Russian President Vladimir Putin and his minister for children. As of February, Khan has also been sanctioned by US President Donald Trump because of the arrest warrants issued for Netanyahu and Gallant. He has had his US visa revoked and his wife and children have been banned from travelling to the US. His bank accounts have been frozen in the UK. The warrants for Israeli leaders are currently in the hands of two deputy prosecutors. Last Thursday, the US imposed further sanctions on four ICC judges whom it accused of being involved in 'illegitimate actions targeting the United States and Israel'. Neither the US nor Israel are parties to the Rome Statute and have long rejected the authority of the court. In a statement, the ICC said it deplored the sanctions against Khan and the four judges. It said it stood fully behind its personnel and would continue its work undeterred. 'These measures are a clear attempt to undermine the independence of an international judicial institution which operates under the mandate from 125 States Parties from all corners of the globe,' it said. The court recently ordered that any further warrants issued in relation to its Palestine investigation cannot be publicised.
Middle East Eye
2 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
UK: Palestine and climate activists urge government to secure release of Madleen crew
A coalition of Palestinian solidarity and climate justice groups are staging an 'emergency demonstration' outside the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) to demand the government secures the release of the detained crew aboard a charity vessel which was carrying aid to Gaza. The Madleen, whose 12-strong crew includes climate activist Greta Thunberg, was delivering a symbolic amount of humanitarian aid, including rice and baby formula, to Gaza with the intention of breaking Israel's siege on the territory. It was intercepted by Israeli forces at around 3am on Monday, who detained the crew. The Gaza Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), which operates the vessel, accused Israel of 'forcibly intercepting' the boat and acting with 'total impunity'. It said in a statement that the boat was 'unlawfully boarded', its crew 'abducted' and its cargo confiscated by Israeli forces in international waters in the early hours of Monday morning. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters The protest was organised by a broad coalition of Palestinian and climate groups, including Fossil Free London, and calls on the UK government to push for the release of the activists. They argue that under international maritime law, the UK has full jurisdiction over the vessel and a legal duty to protect the crew as the boat is British flagged. Israel orders military to stop aid boat with Greta Thunberg reaching Gaza Read More » "As a vessel flying the British flag, it falls under the jurisdiction and responsibility of the UK government, which has a legal duty to defend 'Madleen' and the civilians on board, and to prevent unlawful interference - including any threat or use of force - by foreign powers such as Israel,' the FFC said in a statement published on X. It added that any attack or interference with the boat would 'constitute a violation of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)' as well as an 'affront to UK sovereignty, and a breach of international humanitarian law'. Shortly before communication with the boat was lost, a photo was circulated on social media showing the activists with their hands up in the air, wearing life jackets. Before their arrest, crew aboard the FFC said that quadcopters surrounded the aid ship and sprayed it with a "white liquid". A series of pre-recorded messages by the activists were also released. 'If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped in international waters by the Israeli occupational forces,' Thunberg said. The Israeli foreign ministry said the crew were being taken to Israel and 'were expected to return to their home countries', posting an image of Thunberg being offered a sandwich. "The show is over," the ministry added. Huwaida Arraf, the co-founder of the International Solidarity Movement that is supporting the flotilla, said that Israel has "no legal authority" to detain the Madleen crew. 'These volunteers are not subject to Israeli jurisdiction and cannot be criminalized for delivering aid or challenging an illegal blockade - their detention is arbitrary, unlawful, and must end immediately," Arraf said in a statement. President Emmanuel Macron requested that the six French activists aboard the boat "be allowed to return to France as soon as possible", an unnamed French official told AFP.
