PARIS, October 16. /TASS/. An international anti-terrorism operation by Interpol, bringing together law enforcers from 14 countries, has led to the detention of 66 people, the international police organization’s press service said.
"Operation Neptune VI brought together law enforcement agencies from 14 countries with the goal of bolstering security measures and responses around the maritime routes across the Mediterranean Sea, as well as in airports and at land borders in the participating countries," the organization said in a statement.
"The operation focused on identifying and analyzing the movement patterns of Foreign Terrorist Fighters and people with links to terrorism as well as criminal groups responsible for cross-border crimes such as drug trafficking, weapons smuggling and human trafficking," it said.
During the two-week operation, participating countries carried out more than 16 million crosschecks against the various Interpol databases, generating 187 ‘hits’.
A dozen arrests were made on the basis of Interpol Red Notices. Another 54 people were apprehended under national arrest warrants and for crimes detected at the border, including drugs and fraud offenses as well as the smuggling of gold, cash and weapons.
The initiative yielded significant seizures, including 549,000 euros in undeclared cash, gold worth 10 million euros, 25 kilograms of cannabis, and 35 vehicles declared to be stolen.
The operation, which was completed on September 16, was carried out by Albania, Algeria, Bulgaria, Jordan, Iraq, Spain, Italy, Cyprus, Lebanon, Morocco, Portugal, Tunisia, France and Montenegro.
It was coordinated by the World Customs Organization (WCO), Europol and Europe’s border and coastal guards service Frontex.