Serbian police detain 6 people after deadly shooting between migrants near Hungary border

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Serbian police have arrested six people and seized automatic weapons after a shooting between migrants near the country’s tense border with Hungary killed three people and injured one.

Police said late Friday they detained four Afghan and two Turkish nationals suspected of unlawful possession of guns and explosives. It was not immediately clear whether they would be charged with the shooting as well.

The suspected clash between groups of migrants happened early Friday in abandoned farming warehouses near the village of Horgos. Police raided the area and seized two automatic rifles and ammunition. They also found 79 migrants and transferred them to reception centers, the statement said.

Reports of violence and gunbattles have become common near the border between Serbia and European Union member nation Hungary. Thousands of migrants have been camping in the area, looking for ways to cross with the help of people smugglers.

Serbian police have raided the border zone on several occasions over the past several months, arresting suspected people smugglers and confiscating weapons. President Aleksandar Vucic said on Friday that Serbia could bring in the military “to fix this,” state RTS television reported.

The Serbia-Hungary border area lies on the so-called Balkan land route of migration toward Western Europe, which leads from Turkey to Greece and Bulgaria, and then on to North Macedonia, Serbia or Bosnia.

Hungary’s staunchly anti-immigrant government has put up razor-wire fence on the border with Serbia to stop the influx. People smuggling gangs, however, have multiplied in the border area, often clashing for control.

___

Follow AP’s coverage of migration issues at https://apnews.com/hub/migration