An Garda Síochána Takes Centre Stage in Major Europol Cross-Border Exercise
An Garda Síochána played a leading role in Allies 2026, a major Europol cross-border exercise simulating drug trafficking operations across 12 EU countries.
Irish police played a leading role in a large-scale Europol exercise last month, simulating the tracking and arrest of international drug traffickers across multiple European countries.
From 9 to 12 February 2026, An Garda Síochána participated in 'Allies 2026', a Europol-led exercise designed to enhance cross-border cooperation and interoperability among law enforcement authorities from 12 EU Member States.
Ireland featured prominently in the exercise through 'Operation Shamrock', one of two parallel scenarios that formed the backbone of the training. The scenario followed individuals posing as international drug smugglers, travelling from Dublin to Amsterdam, spending a night in Rotterdam, and returning to Ireland via ferry from Cherbourg, France.
Surveillance teams from Ireland, the Netherlands, and France monitored the targets throughout their journey. On their return to Dublin, a planned rendezvous with other members of a fictional criminal organisation was closely observed before intervention teams moved in.
The response in Dublin involved resources from An Garda Síochána's Special Tactics and Operations Command (STOC) Emergency Response Unit (ERU), along with other Garda National Units. The operation showcased a wide range of capabilities, including sniper, abseiling, land, maritime, and canine units.
A second concurrent exercise, 'Operation Cargill', saw participants tracking individuals suspected of planning coordinated attacks on critical infrastructure across several European countries, testing the capacity of law enforcement agencies to monitor multiple criminal activities across multiple jurisdictions simultaneously.
The full exercise brought together three specialist European networks: the ATLAS Network, which marks its 25th anniversary this year and comprises 38 special intervention units from across the EU and beyond; the European Surveillance Group (ESG); and the In-Flight Security Officer Network (EIFS). Europol coordinated the exercise from a dedicated room at its headquarters in The Hague, the Netherlands.
Participating countries included Austria, Belgium, Czechia, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, and Slovakia.
