What is the security situation in BiH? It is a question that has been discussed a lot in recent days. That it is stable and at an enviable level – claim the leaders of the relevant ministries. And while they claim that there is no cause for concern, our country is once again being targeted as one of those that has problems with potentially dangerous terrorist individuals. And it’s not the first time. The latest accusations come from Italy. According to local media, there are terrorist cells in the Western Balkans, and therefore in BiH. The hard word is 20 such groups that want to destabilize Europe.
European Union countries are tightening border control. The new crisis in the Middle East has brought back controls within Schengen. They cite security threats as the reason. In this light, the Balkans are also mentioned, indispensably BiH, as a potential place where terrorist cells exist. Namely, referring to the Italian intelligence service, certain local media claim that since the beginning of the conflict in the Middle East, terrorist plans have been intensifying in some Balkan countries, including Bosnia and Herzegovina, whose aim is attacks across Europe. However, relevant state and entity ministers assure – there is no reason to worry. The situation is under control.
“We will respond to all challenges. We will not allow anyone to point the finger at BiH and blame BiH for such things that are not true,” said FBiH Interior Minister Ramo Isak.
“What I can say is that we have adequate information and that the services are keeping the situation under control. I would like to tell the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina that the security situation is good”, emphasizes the Minister of Security of Bosnia and Herzegovina Nenad Nešić.
“There is no fear for our citizens at this time, but we will certainly not give in.” Therefore, we will fully monitor the situation in accordance with the security information we have”, says the Minister of Internal Affairs of the RS, Siniša Karan.
Commenting on the raising of the security level in many countries and the media writing about the existence of terrorist cells, the President of the RS Milorad Dodik said that there are various sleeper cells in BiH. According to him, ten years ago OSA presented the information that 3,500 rough sleepers were registered in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“We are trying to ensure that the RS is stable, but what we see is a kind of danger for Europe. You can already see that the Swedish army is used to maintain order. New border crossings are being established where they were previously abolished. All this indicates that the world is in serious disarray,” explained Dodik.
Who is pointing the finger at BiH when talking about terrorism? Stories about terrorist cells in BiH are as old as the country itself. Such claims often came from those closest to us – our neighbors. The fact is that they have never been confirmed. But the damage is done. However, on the other hand, our country clearly has the problem of weak control of its border. This allows hundreds of migrants to enter illegally each year. Among them, it is possible, there are those who can represent a security risk, both within BiH and the EU countries.
“Now we have a Border Police that is not sufficiently trained due to understaffing to carry out tasks that are increasingly delicate and complex. As much as the Border Police tries to prevent entry, migrants find new ways to enter,” explains military and political analyst Đuro Kozar.
“The porosity of anyone’s state border is always a security threat, regardless of whether it is illegal migration, smuggling, transnational organized crime or terrorism,” says Eldan Mujanović, professor at the Faculty of Criminology, Criminology and Security Studies.
During the last year, the BiH Border Police registered 14,309 persons who illegally crossed or attempted to cross the border. During this year alone, 4,300 illegal crossing attempts were registered. When we take into account the fact that the border service lacks more than 600 border guards, there are certainly reasons for urgent intervention by the authorities, but also for caution, Federalna reports.
