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UK sanctions Balkan people-smuggling gangs ahead of summit in London
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on October 22, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
Global Banking and Finance Review
Company
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on October 22, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
The UK has sanctioned Balkan gangs involved in human trafficking, focusing on reducing illegal migration and enhancing regional security.
LONDON (Reuters) -Britain on Wednesday sanctioned what it said were Balkan-based criminal gangs producing forged documents used in human trafficking, and several others involved in financing such illegal migration.
"There’s a criminal route through the Western Balkans bringing illegal migrants to the UK, and we’re determined to shut it down by working with European partners," Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a statement ahead of a summit in London with leaders from western Balkan states.
The summit is expected to focus on efforts to reduce illegal migration - a top political concern for voters in Britain - as well as regional security and other shared threats.
The government imposed sanctions on members of what it described as a Kosovo-based "organised crime group responsible for producing false documents and supplying them to criminal gangs."
It also sanctioned a man it said was the leader of a Croatian gang supplying false Croatian passports to Balkan gangs.
Two other individuals and a trading company were sanctioned for their part in a network that transferred money and bought small boat components used by gangs in facilitating illegal migration, the British government statement said.
(Reporting by Sam Tabahriti and Catarina Demony, writing by William James; Editing by Kate Holton)
Human trafficking is the illegal trade of humans for the purposes of forced labor, sexual slavery, or commercial sexual exploitation. It is a serious crime and a violation of human rights.
Sanctions are penalties or restrictions imposed by one country on another to influence its behavior. They can include trade restrictions, financial penalties, or travel bans.
A criminal gang is a group of individuals who collaborate to engage in illegal activities, often for profit. These activities can include drug trafficking, human trafficking, and organized crime.
Illegal migration refers to the movement of people into a country in violation of its immigration laws. This often involves crossing borders without proper documentation or authorization.
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