British border security officers have been deployed to the Balkans for the first time in an effort to disrupt the networks smuggling people into the UK.
Working with Europe’s border patrol agency Frontex, they have been tasked with developing new ways of tracking down and arresting smugglers.
The team will train local guards to use British-made drones, night-vision goggles and biometric technology to trace people moving along the so-called Balkan route – the corridor stretching from Turkey through Greece, North Macedonia, Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, before winding towards western Europe.
Since 2016, almost 1 million crossings have been registered, according to the Forced Migration Review (FMR).
Today, the route remains one of the most used by people, mainly from the Middle East, towards the EU.
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But with time, crossings have become much more perilious.
Balkan route known for human rights abuses
What was once a path of hope for those fleeing war and poverty has now become synonymous with violence, exploitation and abuse.
Human rights monitors have documented routine beatings, dogs being set on people and illegal pushbacks by border forces trying to seal off the EU’s southeastern flank.
In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the UN agency for migration, the IOM, collected testimonials from people sheltering in temporary centres, which shed light on some of the alleged practices.
Confiscation and destruction of documents, denial of access to the asylum procedures, and detention without food and water are often mentioned, the FMR reported.
In 2024, 5,741 people said they had experienced pushbacks and inhumane treatment at or after crossing the border.
As many as 12% of cases involved unaccompanied or separated children and women.
In 55% of the incidents documented, migrants reported excessive use of force by Border Police officials.
UK operations to tackle route
Britain’s involvement will add a new dimension to the challenges faced by people on their way to Europe.
Home secretary Shabana Mahmood has been hosting her counterparts from across the western Balkans, as well as other European allies, at a London summit aimed at striking deals to tackle illegal migration.
She said: ‘I have instructed UK law enforcement to explore all options including deploying operations in the West Balkans to tackle the illegal migration routes.
‘I have pledged to do whatever it takes to secure our borders. That is exactly what I am doing.’
Some 22,000 people were smuggled by gangs along routes through the Western Balkans last year, according to the Home Office.
The British deployment is expected to bolster investigations into some of the criminal gangs operating in the region.
People forced to rely on smugglers
Klikactiv, a Serbian NGO developing social policies, released a report on Monday, showing that people on the move are forced to rely on smugglers because the legal routes into the continent are blocked.
It said: ‘The Drina and Tisa rivers are becoming deadly borders, while smuggling networks are almost entirely in charge of migrants’ movements across Serbia.
‘In the second quarter of 2025, there were recorded instances of brutal
armed clashes, killings, abductions of minors, and deaths along the borders with Bosnia and Herzegovina and Hungary.
‘The protection system is nearly non-functional – the number of people in the centers is decreasing, and trust in institutions is minimal.
‘Under these conditions, the lives of people on the move become objects of trade, violence, and total institutional neglect.’
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