Hungarian police teams return from Serbia, Macedonia missions – VIDEO

Budapest, December 23 (MTI) – Police contingents serving in border patrol missions in Serbia and Macedonia returned to Hungary on Friday.

During their missions, the Hungarian officers apprehended 102 illegal migrants in Serbia and 377 in Macedonia, police chief Károly Papp said at a welcoming ceremony for the returning policemen.

Over the course of the year, a total of 385 Hungarian police officers served in border patrol missions abroad, and 472 foreign officers helped patrol Hungary’s borders, Papp said.

Altogether 18,200 migrants were apprehended this year while trying to enter Hungary, 95.4 percent less than in 2015, he said.

More than 18,000 illegal migrants have been prevented from entering the country since border rules were tightened at the beginning of July, Papp added.

He said several thousand police officers and soldiers will be on duty on the Hungarian-Serbian border over the holidays, adding that Hungary will send a new police contingent to Macedonia early next year.