French President Emmanuel Macron called for Europe to re-think its Schengen Area open-border system Thursday after recent Islamic terror attacks across the continent.
Macron said that many of the criminal enterprises who frequently traffic migrants into Europe are linked to terrorist organizations, Reuters reported. “I am in favor of a deep overhaul of Schengen to re-think its organization and to strengthen our common border security with a proper border force,” the French leader said while visiting his country’s border with Spain.
The Schengen Area is a group of 26 European countries that do not have any passport requirements or other border controls for travel between them. This means that any person who successfully migrates into one of those 26 countries could then travel freely to any of the others under the current rules. (RELATED: Afghan Teen Arrested After Attacking Elderly Nun Amid Series Of Incidents Targeting Christians)
President Macron said he will present a plan to change border restrictions at the EU summit in December, per Reuters. Austria and France, who have been subjected to major terror attacks in recent weeks, are both part of the Schengen Area.
Renforçons notre sécurité.
Refondons Shengen. pic.twitter.com/hInm8YMmlo— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) November 5, 2020
France has faced international backlash from Muslim communities as the country has cracked down on Islamic extremism following recent terror attacks.
Schoolteacher Samuel Paty was beheaded in Paris several weeks ago, allegedly for showing his students cartoons mocking the Prophet Mohammad during a discussion about free speech.
More recently, a migrant from Tunisia killed three people at a church in Nice. That attacker had arrived in Italy, which is part of the Schengen Area, roughly a month before he carried out his killings. (RELATED: French Police Raid Homes Of Islamic Radicals, Interview Nearly 80 People Who Posted Messages Supporting Decapitation Of Teacher)
A gunman who had previously gone to prison for trying to join ISIS killed multiple people Monday in Vienna, Austria. Following that attack, authorities in the U.K. increased the country’s terror threat level to “severe,” indicating that they believe an attack is highly likely in the near future.