EU: Schengen travel restrictions badly checked amid pandemic

BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union auditors say the bloc’s executive arm should have checked more carefully the restrictions on free movement imposed by EU countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. In its report Monday, the European Court of Auditors, or ECA, said the supervision of the internal border controls reintroduced since March 2020 “did not fully safeguard the Schengen rules.” EU nations struggled to coordinate travel restrictions during the coronavirus pandemic as they tried to maintain a smooth circulation of people and goods. The pandemic has killed at least 6.3 million people around the world so far.