Untangling the knot : human smuggling, terrorism and transnational crime
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2414-1011
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United Nations, 2019, Vol. 10, No. 1/2, pp. 1-24
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ACHILLI, Luigi, YATES, Caitlyn, Untangling the knot : human smuggling, terrorism and transnational crime, United Nations, 2019, Vol. 10, No. 1/2, pp. 1-24 - https://hdl.handle.net/1814/72926
Abstract
According to much contemporary literature on the illicit global economy,
there is a convergence between different groups involved in transnational
organized crimes such as drug trafficking, smuggling of migrants and
trafficking in persons, as well as terrorism. This has increased the urgency of
countries’ efforts to stem irregular migration, and some countries have militarized their border controls. However, a closer look at two prominent
groups, the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) and the Islamic State in Iraq and the
Levant (ISIL), shows that neither group has consistently used smuggling of
migrants as a source of revenue. Moreover, the organization and aims of
these two groups are geared towards the acquisition of territorial control,
which does not match the short timescales and operational nimbleness
required of migrant-smuggling groups. The authors thus argue that the oftalleged link between organized crime, terrorism and human smuggling is
largely artificial.