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TERRORISM

Swiss entry bans triple over terror fears

Swiss federal police (Fedpol) has banned nearly 100 people from entering Switzerland this year, mainly over fears they are linked to jihadism, more than triple the number of bans dished out the previous year.

Published: 31 October 2016 09:23 CET
Swiss entry bans triple over terror fears
A Swiss border crossing. File photo: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP

This year to date 97 people have been banned from entering the country, compared with just 28 people in the whole of 2015, reported news agencies.

The bans are mainly dished out to people who are suspected of having jihadist motives, for example they have joined a terrorist organization such as Islamic State and intend to return to Europe, Fedpol spokesperson Lulzana Musliu told ATS.

Under Swiss law, Fedpol can ban anyone who represents a threat to security in Switzerland through terrorism, extreme violence or organized crime.

The ban can be for a few days, several years or even indefinitely.

CRIME

Hoax bomb threats against French airports ‘traced to Swiss email’

Repeated bomb threats against dozens of French airports which led to evacuations and flight cancellations have been 'traced to an email address in Switzerland', according to French authorities.

Published: 23 October 2023 09:13 CEST
Hoax bomb threats against French airports 'traced to Swiss email'

More than 70 bomb threats have been made against French airports in the past week, leading to evacuations at dozens of airports and at least 130 flights cancelled.

Most of the alerts were triggered by emails warning of a bomb in the airport – more than 70 such emails have been received by airports around the country such as Toulouse, Bordeaux, Paris Beauvais, Marseille and dozens of smaller airports – including Basel-Mulhouse on the Franco-Swiss border. 

On Sunday French Transport Minister Clément Beaune said that “almost all of the threats have been traced to the same email address, situated in Switzerland”.

He added: “Since Wednesday, it is almost always the same email address that is used, located outside the European Union, in Switzerland”.

He called on hosting sites to help the French authorities, saying: “Everyone has a responsibility, including the platforms and social networks, not to support this kind of attack and to cooperate as quickly as possible with the French civil aviation authorities and our justice system.”

In France, the maximum penalty for making a hoax bomb threat is two years in jail and a €30,000 fine.

As well as airport evacuations and flight disruption, French tourist sites have also been hit with bomb hoaxes – the Palace of Versailles has been evacuated seven times in the past week.

It comes in the context of a tense situation in France as the country raised its terror alert to maximum after an apparent Islamist attack on Friday, October 13th in which a teacher was killed and two others wounded.

Security at large events such as the Rugby World Cup matches has been stepped up. 

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