Italian police have blocked and revoked 3,339 applications for the arrival of workers from non-EU countries as part of an investigation into the illegal importation of immigrants.
Law enforcement authorities in Italy reported that requests for work permits for foreigners were submitted by 142 Italian companies operating in agriculture, construction, and home care services.
According to an investigation by the Salerno Prosecutor’s Office in southern Italy, these companies used several local criminal organizations, from which 1 million euros in cash were seized in July, to illegally bring in migrants.
As a result, the Italian authorities allowed 29 provinces involved in the investigation to block the issuance of current work permits and revoke those that had already been granted.
The right-wing government of Italy, led by Giorgia Meloni, has pledged to take tough measures to combat migration – thousands of migrants arrive in the country each year across the Mediterranean Sea.
This year, Italy reached an agreement with Albania to build temporary accommodation camps for illegal migrants in the latter country, but this mechanism faced resistance from Italian judges.
