Ever since the Belfast attack, UK authorities launched a crackdown of migrants crossing the border - cutting asylum applications here a massive amount. Which makes the small number of spot checks done here last year even more laughable

Published: 23:21, 11 July 2026 | Updated: 23:21, 11 July 2026 The flow of immigrants across the border has halved since authorities north of the border launched a crackdown following the attempted beheading on the streets of Belfast by a man who originally travelled to the North via Dublin, the Irish Mail on Sunday can reveal. It comes as the Department of Justice this weekend confirmed just 30 days of inspections were carried out on cross-border transport routes last year – an average of one round of checks every 10 days. Diplomatic fears have prevented the Government from forcibly expressing its conviction that a huge majority of foreign nationals seeking asylum in Ireland are not coming directly from war-torn nations, but from the United Kingdom. And according to Department of Justice sources, this is supported by the most recent comparison of asylum figures revealed in the Irish Mail on Sunday, which show more than nine in 10 asylum seekers are entering the Republic through the border.  But since rioting erupted across the North last month after a shocking video of an asylum seeker attacking a man in Belfast went viral, the numbers of those seeking asylum in the South has almost halved. The Government attributes this to massively scaled-up immigration checks and administration in the North since the alleged assault by Hadi Alodid, who appeared in court this week. He is accused of attempted murder, possession of a knife and making threats to kill hospital radiographer Stephen Ogilvie, who lost an eye in the attack. The 30-year-old, who was originally thought to be from Sudan but the PSNI this week indicated he may be from Chad, originally presented himself to immigration authorities in Dublin. The Irish Government came in for criticism after days of unrest in the North in the aftermath of the attack for failing to properly police Ireland’s ‘open’ border. Fred Kelly completes his journey from Dublin to Belfast without hiccup However, senior Coalition sources yesterday said the latest figures on asylum applications point to a lack of previous checks on the Northern side of the border. One source at the top of the Government told the MoS: ‘The Brits are finally getting their house in order on immigrants crossing the border because they have realised they are going both ways.’ A senior figure at the Department of Justice said: ‘The event in Belfast has made the British realise that they need to get a proper engagement and arrangement with us. ‘They’ve had no problem if there are people who have made their way into the North [of Ireland] and come down to the South. ‘But it is happening the other way and unfortunately it took the awful events in Belfast to make them understand that. ‘Now, we have seen a massive upscaling of immigration action from both the British authorities and the Northern Irish authorities.  They imposed proper structures that week. ‘The British realised then that it [the travel of asylum seekers] was happening the other way.’ The change of attitude in the North coincided with the enforcement of new laws in the Republic. On June 12, 2026 – four days after the Belfast knife attack – Ireland enacted the International Protection Act 2026, which Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan said marked the biggest change to asylum laws in the State’s history.  It implemented the new EU Migration and Asylum Pact. The new law introduces major shifts to how asylum and family reunification are processed. A senior Government source said: ‘Since the 12th of June, when the new Act came in, the numbers seeking asylum are down very significantly.  'So the numbers coming over the border are down very significantly, from North to South.  'If you look at the stats from before June 12, they are down massively.’ Last month, the MoS revealed how the latest figures indicated more than 90 per cent of illegal immigrants were entering the country through Ireland’s ‘open’ border. But according to senior figures at the Department of Justice, who oversee immigration policy, in the 20 days prior to June 12, 1,242 applicants sought asylum in the Republic of Ireland.  In the 20 days after June 12, just 545 applicants sought asylum. A Department source noted: ‘We directly attribute this to a new level of enforcement in Northern Ireland and from British authorities that oversaw the travel of migrants from Britain to Northern Ireland.  'Even if we drill down into the breakdown of nationalities, almost no Somali people have claimed asylum since the 12th of June.’ Sources said the new legislation has given the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) a new ‘structure’ for immigration intelligence and information-sharing with the PSNI. ‘The PSNI are sharing data with gardaí since that week in June that shows they massively ramped up their immigration activity,’ the source added. ‘They are seizing passports and phones that are evidence of far more organised gang activity in transporting people from the UK into Northern Ireland,’ said a Department of Justice source. ‘For those calling for radical action on the border, this is evidence that it is now happening.  'Yes, the new Act is effective, but the real change is the absolute change in the PSNI, British Police and British authorities’ activity. ‘It took an awful event, and then the international attention that came with the rioting that followed it.  'We understand how the impact racial politics and subsequent riots can affect your international reputation.  'But we believe that this has all spurred them to action.’ Independent TD Carol Nolan called on the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) to carry out ‘rigorous inspections’ on people crossing the border by bus and train similar to checks at airports Both Mr O’Callaghan and his predecessor, Helen McEntee, have pledged to clamp down on illegal border crossings. But in response to queries from the MoS, the Department of Justice this week confirmed Operation Sonnet – the GNIB operation set up to target abuse of the Common Travel Area (CTA) – operated on just 30 days last year, detecting 184 transgressions. Behind the scenes, a senior Government source said there is ‘an acceptance in the Department of Justice that something has to be done with regards to the border’. They told the MoS: ‘Right now, there is tokenism around the alleged “immigration checks” on buses and trains coming across the border.  'Officially, the Department will say that there are checks, but they are sporadic and for show.  'Nobody really believes that this situation, with what is essentially an open border will continue if we actually expect to reform our immigration policy.’ While pledging to tackle cross-border immigration abuses, the Government has also vowed there cannot be return of a ‘hard’ border. Referring to the dilemma, the Government source noted that, ‘immigration-wise, the border is the great big elephant in the room.’ There are conflicting agendas with the Government over the border.  But recent opinion polling which shows one in three people in the Republic favour a harder border for purposes of immigration has urged officials at the Department of Justice to overhaul the immigration checking system. A source told the MoS: ‘The entire business of the Department is now focused on immigration and even the Minister [O’Callaghan] has discussed the need for action on the border.  'A start would be the imposition of proper checks on public transport. ‘The British authorities aren’t exactly discouraging failed asylum applicants there to get on a ferry to Larne.  'There is then nothing to stop them getting a bus or a train to Dublin,’ the source said. ‘There is increasing evidence that there would be public and government support for an escalation of border checks.  'There is going to have to be consideration of the installation of border checkpoints too. Because it is not sustainable as things stand.’ This view was echoed by Independent TD Carol Nolan, who called on the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) to carry out ‘rigorous inspections’ on people crossing the border by bus and train similar to checks at airports. She also said the Department’s official responses indicate ‘a total absence of any sense of genuine urgency in dealing with the issue’. Ms Nolan told the MoS: ‘There is a need for simple practical actions.  'We should radically increase GNIB checks on buses and trains to at least send the signal that this is being taken seriously. ‘We may need to follow the precedents being set in fining air carriers for non-compliance.  'It may actually have to come to something like that with bus companies and other transport providers.’ Ms Nolan acknowledged that ‘no one will accept the return of a hard border’ but said more checks on illegal migrants must be carried out as ‘clearly the CTA is being widely abused’. Figures for up to the first week of June this year showed asylum seekers were increasingly entering the Republic via the North. Between January 1 and June 5, 4,911 of the 5,443 (90.2 per cent) International Protection applicants who claimed asylum in Ireland arrived in the country after crossing the border.  Less than 10 per cent (532) came though airports or seaports. This represents a proportional increase on the figures for last year, when 11,557 of the 13,147 (87.9 per cent) IP applicants claimed asylum after crossing the border. It is a huge jump on figures from pre-Brexit 2019, when 2,278 of the 4,783 (47.6 per cent) IP applicants arrived in the Republic via the border.  The same year, 2,505 (52 per cent) of asylum seekers entered the State through the country’s airports and seaports. Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article.