SKOPJE, North Macedonia: Police in North Macedonia said Wednesday they had arrested nine people, including a police officer, on suspicion of smuggling dozens of migrants through the country.
The nine, who are all Macedonian nationals and include two minors, were arrested during raids on 11 locations in the capital, Skopje. Another two men were being sought, police said.
Three men from Middle Eastern countries who have not been arrested are believed to have led the group, which is accused of having smuggled people from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria and other countries from Greece to North Macedonia on their way to Serbia and then wealthier European countries.
The group is also accused of having transferred Indian migrants from Serbia to Greece through North Macedonia, police said.
Authorities said the group is believed to have smuggled at least 86 people during a six-month period from May to October, charging them up to 800 euros ($850) each for the transfer.
The nine were set to appear before an investigating judge later Wednesday.
The migration route that stretches through from Greece through the Balkans became more active again this year after many Balkan countries lifted travel restrictions imposed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
North Macedonia’s interior minister, Oliver Spasovski, recently said that police recorded 83 migrant-smuggling attempts in the first 10 months of the year, nearly double the number compared to the same period in 2021.
9 arrested in North Macedonia for migrant smuggling
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9 arrested in North Macedonia for migrant smuggling
- The nine, who are all Macedonian nationals and include two minors, were arrested during raids on 11 locations in Skopje
- The group is also accused of having transferred Indian migrants from Serbia to Greece
The UN aid coordination agency cuts its funding appeal after Western support plunges
- The UN aid coordinator sought $47 billion for this year and aimed to help 190 million people worldwide. Because of the lower support, it and humanitarian partners reached 25 million fewer people this year than in 2024
GENEVA: The UN’s humanitarian aid coordination office is downsizing its appeal for annual funding in 2026 after support this year, mostly from Westerngovernments, plunged to the lowest level in a decade.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said Monday it was seeking $33 billion to help some 135 million people cope with fallout from wars, climate disasters, earthquakes, epidemics and food shortages. This year, it took in $15 billion, the lowest level in a decade.
The office says next year it wants more than $4.1 billion to reach 3 million people in Palestinian areas, another $2.9 billion for Sudan — home to the world’s largest displacement crisis — and $2.8 billion for a regional plan around Syria.
“In 2025, hunger surged. Food budgets were slashed — even as famines hit parts of Sudan and Gaza. Health systems broke apart,” said OCHA chief Tom Fletcher. “Disease outbreaks spiked. Millions went without essential food, health care and protection. Programs to protect women and girls were slashed, hundreds of aid organizations shut.”
The UN aid coordinator sought $47 billion for this year and aimed to help 190 million people worldwide. Because of the lower support, it and humanitarian partners reached 25 million fewer people this year than in 2024.
The donor fatigue comes as many wealthy European countries face security threats from an increasingly assertive Russia on their eastern flank and have experienced lackluster economic growth in recent years, putting new strains on government budgets and the consumers who pay taxes to sustain them.
“I know budgets are tight right now. Families everywhere are under strain,” Fletcher said. “But the world spent $2.7 trillion on defense last year – on guns and arms. And I’m asking for just over 1 percent of that.”
The UN system this year has slashed thousands of jobs, notably at its migration and refugee agencies, and Secretary-General António Guterres’ office has launched a review of UN operations — which may or may not produce firm results.
Fletcher, who answers to Guterres, has called for “radical transformation” of aid by reducing bureaucracy, boosting efficiency and giving more power to local groups. Fletcher cited “very practical, constructive conversations” almost daily with the Trump administration.
“Do I want to shame the world into responding? Absolutely,” Fletcher said. “But I also want to channel this sense of determination and anger that we have as humanitarians, that we will carry on delivering with what we get.”
