A few days ago, I was reading in the press about one of those hidden realities that disturb you and chill your blood until they take away your desire for everything – especially if you are a parent. According to the news, in a joint operation between Spain and France, a network of human scum dedicated to trafficking tutored migrant minors has been dismantled. The operation resulted in nine arrests in Lanzarote and a couple more throughout the archipelago; which confirms, to the shame of all of us who live here, Lanzarote's undeniable role in this sad story. But what truly turns my stomach is the realization that the system that is supposed to protect us is failing on all fronts. And that twelve girls and one boy are still missing, and today they could be being used as sex toys in some dark corner while we continue to debate here whether those in red, violet, blue, or green are the real villains
“There is no evil as evil as that which is born from the seed of good”.
He wrote it five centuries ago, Baldassare Castiglione, and the old Italian was not mistaken in the slightest. If he were to rise from his grave, he would tell us that the seed of good, in this case, is our hypocritical conscience as civilized Europeans who welcome the needy only to then, through sheer incapacity or neglect – I would say neglect – let them fall into the hands of wolves, of which there are many. It doesn't matter if one thinks they should be with their parents or if one believes this is all a scam; those are barstool arguments. The reality, the dirty and raw reality, is that these minors fell into an exploitation ring due to an act of good faith that went wrong. We promised them safety and delivered them to hell. And the only thing I think about is that it could be your son, daughter, or mine. The reality is that this is nothing more than the tip of an iceberg that no one wants to face, and that will end up sinking the ship
For a decade, we've heard politicians of all stripes hurling accusations at each other about irregular immigration, using it as a weapon in the ignoble game they play. I'm not going to wade into that mud pit, because the solution isn't found behind closed doors, but outside them. The solution lies where the problems are born, and the problems are born there, not here. What happens here is the result of not addressing what happens there. It's simple and easy to understand. That's why, while we here fill our mouths with words like "invasion," "rights," or "solidarity," we deliberately overlook what happens in the countries of origin, mainly in Africa, or who finances and who profits from all of this. We're talking about a machine that, according to the UN, generates $7 billion annually from human trafficking alone. If we add to that the trafficking of women and minors for sexual exploitation, the figure skyrockets to truly sickening levels.
As I was saying, the problem isn't the immigrant risking their life; the problem is the industry that commercializes people's desperation and, in passing, finances illicit activities like terrorism or drug trafficking, which in turn inject more people into desperation. And it all happens in our closest neighborhood, the African Continent. And don't fool yourselves, Africa is a stone's throw away and things there are looking worse and worse
Everyone has heard of the Sahel and the Maghreb at some point, but few understand what is really going on there. Both regions play a relevant role in this story of supervised minors who disappear, but if the media does not pay attention, most people become immune to the truth and blind to the facts. We are talking about vast and harsh territories, where mostly corrupt governments
fraternize with organized crime and the terrorist groups operating there. It's a vicious cycle: terror and misery, fueled by rotten institutions and rampant terrorism, push people to flee; and by fleeing, they fall into the hands of those who sustain this chaos, the criminal organizations and the terrorist groups themselves who kill them. If you have the courage, look for the report on the jihadist threat in the Sahel published in 2025 by CESEDEN (Higher Center for National Defense Studies).
The 'Triple Frontier', as the point where Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso converge is known, is the hot zone. These three countries are part of the Sahel (which also includes Mauritania, Senegal, North Sudan, and Nigeria) and for those who live there, it is hell on earth. Along with the Maghreb, it is what is known as the "southern flank." And it is here that the perfect storm is brewing, and we Europeans watch it as if it had nothing to do with us when it is our most important backyard along with Ukraine. In that yard, it's not just fanatics reciting surahs while riding a Kalashnikov. What we have on the other side, from where irregular immigration reaches us, is an adventure of terror. Groups like JNIM (an Al Qaeda franchise), the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS), ISAWP (Islamic State's West Africa Province and Daesh's largest franchise, with Boko Haram being its most important faction), or Ansarul Islam have understood that jihad is expensive and that Allah provides, but organized crime provides faster and better. So, the same one who slaughters you and burns your property is the one who collects tolls from human traffickers, who traffics in weapons and drugs in collusion with organized crime, who recruits those who cannot flee to continue killing in their name. It is a lethal symbiosis: the terrorist provides the muscle and territorial control; organized crime provides the logistics and money. And in the middle, the cannon fodder that flees towards us (if they arrive)
And let's not be so naive as to believe this happens behind the backs of regional governments. Corruption is not an anomaly in many African countries; it is, rather, the daily bread and the operating system that keeps what's left of the country running. Blood-stained money climbs the food chain to air-conditioned offices in the capitals, both in the Sahel and Maghreb countries. Generals, ministers, and officials turn a blind eye or extend their hands to grab something, allowing the routes used for human trafficking—and drug trafficking, yes, drugs, because South American cartels work in collusion with the groups operating there to introduce cocaine into Spain, the main gateway for the product to the rest of Europe—to remain open. These routes vary in use and frequency. Sometimes the central route (Italy-France) becomes the main highway of death, and other times the detour is taken through the Canary Islands (western route) where the sea exacts its toll. And, listen carefully, we also finance these routes with our money, or do you think that contributions abroad from countries like Spain fall into good hands? Let's not be naive.
And what is the result of all this barbarity that no one talks about? A mass exodus. More than three million internally displaced people, people fleeing with nothing but the clothes on their backs because in their villages the only law in force is that of the machete and extortion. And this mass of people, driven by fear and hunger, does not stand still. They move through the countries of the Sahel and the Maghreb. They flow north, towards the Mediterranean, or west, towards the Atlantic, feeding the very machinery that gives oxygen to those who expel them from their lands and homes. This movement of people, in turn, exerts pressure on transit countries, which simultaneously seek to relieve their economies and cities by allowing passage to Europe.
It's a perfect vicious circle. And no one is doing anything to end itIn summary, jihadist terrorism displaces people while enriching itself through drug trafficking and illegal activities that fund its expenses, organized crime establishes the logistical lines and client networks gaining political influence, corrupt officials collect payments for allowing all this, and with all that money circulating, more weapons are bought, more consciences are bribed, and more drama is generated while the wheel keeps turning. Meanwhile, in Europe, we continue debating whether to build a higher fence or send diplomatic protest notes with a wad of cash in the envelope, ignoring that the fire down there is burning our house. And keep one thing in mind, when a state rots from within and cedes the monopoly of force to organized crime and terrorism, what it exports is not instability. What it exports is desperation, and within that desperation, harmful elements sneak in that later murder, rob, or traffic children right under our noses. According to data from the Department of National Security (DSN), between 2023 and 2025, 110 people related to jihadist terrorism have been arrested in Europe, 98 in Spain. You decide.In short, the three phenomena of immigration, terrorism, and organized crime are intimately related. It is a wheel of blood and money that will not stop turning as long as we continue to respond in the same way as before. In my humble opinion, and forgive me if I am sincere, as long as there is no direct intervention against terrorist groups and criminal networks at their origin, nothing will be fixed. Europe must stop beating around the bush and, with International Law in hand, support security in the region, not only to eliminate terrorists from the equation but to allow those states to breathe without the boot of organized crime and terrorism on their necks. Europe must act as it should and take effective responsibility for its problems. If violence and impunity from both groups are neutralized, the third element, immigration, will cease to be a desperate flight and become a more viable option in life
Rest assured that, either we will put out the fire in their homes, or the blaze will inevitably end up burning ours with us inside.
