“Serbia won’t allow our way of life to be jeopardized in any way by criminals who profit on human misery and hardship,” he said.Police described the operation as an “action designed to curb criminal acts and offenses committed by migrants."The raid followed a major clash by groups of migrants in the border area in early July that left one person dead and several injured. Migrants gather by the Hungarian border hoping to cross from the Balkan country and move further west.Sneaking over Serbia's northern border with the European Union neighbor often takes months because Hungary has put up two rows of barbed wire fence and deployed heavy security to stop migration. Migrants therefore often turn to people smugglers in order to continue their journey toward the EU's more prosperous nations. The Serbian police statement said that special police and counterterrorism unit members, along with state security agents took part in the task force that carried out the operation early Thursday.
Police photos from the scene showed fully equipped officers wearing bulletproof vests and helmets standing guard over a group of migrants kneeling in a field with their hands over their heads.Migrants fleeing wars, violence or poverty in the Middle East, Africa and Asia routinely face perils on their long journeys toward better lives. From Serbia, migrants also cross into Croatia, Bosnia or Romania.