Results released on 23 June from the third 2026 ‘Etoile’ operation show that Belgian, French, Dutch and Luxembourg authorities carried out 3,600+ checks on vehicles, trains and buses along shared borders between 15 and 21 June, arresting 23 suspects and seizing 24.8 kg of cannabis, cocaine and other drugs. French gendarmes participated in spot inspections on the A27 motorway and inside Lille-Brussels rail services. Although the raids targeted narcotics, mobility specialists note a growing overlap between anti-drug efforts and migration policing: identity documents of 1,810 travellers were verified against SIS II and EES databases during the week-long sweep.
![Cross-Border ‘Etoile’ Operation Nets 23 Arrests and Tightens Checks on France-Belgium Corridor]()
For travellers who want to ensure their papers are in perfect order before encountering such inspections, VisaHQ offers easy online assistance with visa applications, transit authorisations and passport renewals. Their France portal (https://www.visahq.com/france/) lays out up-to-date requirements, fees and timelines, helping commuters and tourists move through Schengen checkpoints with confidence.
Customs officers tested new mobile biometric readers designed to integrate directly with France’s TES passport system, cutting verification time to under 30 seconds. Freight drivers reported up to 90-minute waits at the Rekkem (FR–BE) crossing on 19 June. The French logistics association TLF warned members that similar “surge days” will recur throughout 2026 under the Schengen Internal Security Strategy. Employers with cross-border commuters should prepare contingency allowances and communicate that random checks may require carrying both national ID and residence permits. Officials called the joint action a success, citing intelligence gains that will feed into a larger autumn operation aimed at people-smuggling networks. Civil-liberties groups, however, criticised what they see as mission creep that turns temporary internal-border checks into a near-permanent fixture, despite EU pressure to phase them out.
For travellers who want to ensure their papers are in perfect order before encountering such inspections, VisaHQ offers easy online assistance with visa applications, transit authorisations and passport renewals. Their France portal (https://www.visahq.com/france/) lays out up-to-date requirements, fees and timelines, helping commuters and tourists move through Schengen checkpoints with confidence.
Customs officers tested new mobile biometric readers designed to integrate directly with France’s TES passport system, cutting verification time to under 30 seconds. Freight drivers reported up to 90-minute waits at the Rekkem (FR–BE) crossing on 19 June. The French logistics association TLF warned members that similar “surge days” will recur throughout 2026 under the Schengen Internal Security Strategy. Employers with cross-border commuters should prepare contingency allowances and communicate that random checks may require carrying both national ID and residence permits. Officials called the joint action a success, citing intelligence gains that will feed into a larger autumn operation aimed at people-smuggling networks. Civil-liberties groups, however, criticised what they see as mission creep that turns temporary internal-border checks into a near-permanent fixture, despite EU pressure to phase them out.
