Eight held in roadblocks

Eight people were detained during vehicle roadblocks carried out by the armed forces over the weekend.

Two men, a 27-year-old and 24-year-old, were found close to Birżebbuġa on Saturday driving without a valid licence and insurance cover, while a Somali man was found in possession of three knives in his vehicle's glove compartment.

Later that same evening, another three men were found near Cospicua without a valid driving licence. And on Sunday, two men were detained near Rabat after being caught in possession of heroin.

All these individuals were handed over to the police.

Recently several criminal lawyers questioned the legality of roadblocks, saying citizens were not adequately protected against abuse of power and discrimination during such checkpoints.

According to law, those tasked with law enforcement should only stop vehicles and search passengers if they have "reasonable suspicion" that an individual has or is about to commit a crime.