Brussels, 18/11/2009 (Agence Europe) - 22 persons, suspected of smuggling around 2000 illegal immigrants, mainly from Iraq, into the EU, were arrested on Tuesday 17 November, Europol has announced. The arrests took place in France, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, following an investigation initiated by the French border police, Europol revealed. The network brought Iraqis to France, via Turkey, into Greece then Italy. Once in France, the illegal immigrants could choose between the United Kingdom and Sweden and travelled concealed in heavy goods vehicles. “Sometimes the whole family of an illegal migrant, or even their communities, had to cover the costs,” Europol said. To reach the final destination, an Iraqi Kurd would have to spend over €10,000, said French Immigration Minister Eric Besson. He said that this organised network had smuggled “more than 2,000 illegal immigrants, with revenue amounting to around €20 million”. Besson hailed the “exemplary European cooperation” in these investigations conducted through Europol and Eurojust since July 2008. (B.C./transl.rt)