Brussels, 14/10/2014 (Agence Europe) - Several human rights and migrants' rights organisations have criticised the launch on Monday 13 October of a wide-ranging operation in the Schengen area and at external borders. The operation, Mos Maiorum, will target people with no identity papers, though the associations have questioned its legal basis. This “hunt for migrants”, as it has been dubbed by the NGOs, will continue until 26 October. The operation, coordinated by the Italian Presidency, seeks to apprehend illegal migrants in an attempt to identify and weaken criminal people-smuggling organisations. Illegal migrants will be returned to their countries of origin, if they have signed readmission agreements with the EU. Otherwise, they could be placed in detention centres for variable lengths of time, depending on where they have been apprehended or released but served with expulsion notices, AFP reports. “Besides the fact that the European Parliament does not seem to have been informed of the operation, the lack of clarity as regards the legal basis and the practicalities of the operations is particularly problematic. No information is available as to what these interceptions will result in, and whether joint return operations will be organised”, note the associations, such as CIRE, the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network and the CNCD 11.11.11, that form the campaign Frontexit. (SP)