Unfortunately They Are Not All Refugees

Breitbart.com posted an article today which illustrates the problem with the refugees fleeing the Middle East.

The article reports:

A convicted terrorist has been caught trying to smuggle himself into Europe by posing as an asylum seeker, in a stark event proving correct those who warned of terrorists taking advantage of the European Union’s lax border controls.

Ben Nasr Mehdi, a Tunisian who was first arrested in Italy in 2007 and sentenced to seven years imprisonment for plotting terror attacks with an Islamic State-linked group, was caught trying to re-enter the country last month.

Authorities discovered him among 200 migrants who were rescued at sea and taken to the island of Lampedusa. Although he gave a false name, migration officers identified him through finger print records, the Independent reports.

German channel n-tv claims the Italian government initially tried to hide the story to avoid “panic” and “scare tactics”. The news did not emerge until several days after Mehdi had been detained last week.

The good news is that the people on the island had the wisdom to fingerprint the refugees and thus were able to catch Ben Masr Mehdi. The bad news is the claim that the Italian government tried to hide the story.

The article further reports:

Italian Interior Minister Angelino Alfano has until now insisted there is no evidence that Islamist terrorists are smuggling themselves into the country among the thousands of migrants, but his ministry has admitted that Ben Nasr Mehdi is exceptionally dangerous.

When police arrested him in 2007, they found explosive detonators, poisons and guerrilla warfare manuals. Prosecutors said he had been part of a group that was setting up militant cells that had recruited potential suicide bombers.

Authorities intercepted phone calls in which he indicated he had supplied instructions and contacts to terrorists in Damascus, thus marking him out as a senior operative.

I hate to say this, but I am wondering if it would be wise to allow only women and children under the age of twelve to migrate for the time being. There is simply too much danger from young men (and unfortunately, young women) who have been fed hatred of the west and believe it is their religious duty to kill westerners. I truly believe that if we do not find a way to vet these refugees carefully, we will  pay a very high price in the near future.