Antonino Galofaro
After Italy’s refusal to take in the 230 migrants from the Ocean Viking, France is tightening border controls. 500 police officers have been deployed along the border, such as at Modane, the first French station for Italian trains going to Paris.
France is keeping up the pressure after Italy’s refusal to take in the 230 migrants from the Ocean Viking. She asks Europe to decide very quickly on the follow-up to be given, a sign that Franco-Italian relations have been strained since the ship docked in Toulon on Friday. Border controls have been tightened in France. 500 police officers have been deployed along the border, such as at Modane, the first French station for Italian trains going to Paris.
A mobilized team
At 5:50 p.m., night has already fallen on the station. This Italian TGV has just crossed the border. He comes from Turin. It is one of five high-speed trains that the police check every day. This evening, ten agents are ready on the quay. “There are two groups, one at the head of the train and the other at the exit of the train. There are two groups also at the platform which make it possible to secure the platform so that no one gets off the train”, explains Captain Cyriaque Soulas, head of general service in Modane.
It now has four people, in addition to agents from the Lyon railway brigade. The control is more thorough than usual. “We control absolutely all the toilets, all the corners of the train and sometimes you will find that some people fall asleep seeing the police. Very often, these are people who try to avoid our control”, he continues.
Strict control of identity documents
The train is full. Checking identity documents takes about a quarter of an hour. On that day, a person does not have proper papers. “He is a Macedonian without documents who will be refused entry, notification of the form and he will be taken back to Italy”, says Cyriaque Soulas.
Like this 20-year-old young man, several are deported every day, but the authorities do not give any figures.