A vast operation against smuggling and smuggling of migrants carried out by Interpol with the assistance of Morocco resulted in the arrest of 195 people, Interpol announced Friday.
The operation, carried out from March 28 to April 2 with the support of 24 countries of origin, transit or destination, in Africa and Europe, also freed 500 victims of human trafficking – including children – and identify some 760 irregular migrants, said the Lyon-based International Criminal Police Organization.
This operation resulted in the arrest of 195 people: 88 for human trafficking and 63 for human trafficking.
“The other arrests relate to other charges such as falsification of documents, theft, drug trafficking offenses and environmental offenses,” said Interpol in a statement.
According to the International Criminal Police Organization, “Morocco played an important role in this operation by hosting the operational coordination unit and by making 49 arrests, almost exclusively linked to the smuggling of migrants”.
Likewise, it is on “the basis of information from Morocco” that “the Spanish authorities acted by arresting two main smugglers known to have facilitated the transport of irregular migrants from the African continent using rigid inflatable boats and trucks” , adds the same source.
This vast joint operation was supported by a number of partners, underlines Interpol. These include the International Organization for Migration (IOM), which has played a leading role in victim assistance, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), which provided judicial support, and AIRCOP, Europol and the AU-Horn of Africa Initiative on Trafficking and Smuggling of Migrants provided the necessary intelligence.
As part of this operation, the Sudanese police rescued 100 victims and made more than 20 arrests. Those arrested include traffickers who tried to transport the victims to the Middle East, and individuals who exploited children in a plastic factory.
In the Republic of Congo, police freed 29 Lebanese, Syrian and Jordanian trafficking victims exploited by a construction company. Their passports had been confiscated by their so-called employer who did not pay them a salary.
Investigations in Kenya and Uganda led to the arrest of three traffickers in Uganda, who were behind a network of regular trafficking of vulnerable young girls to Kenya.
In South Africa, police raided a blanket factory, arresting five Chinese nationals and rescuing 17 Malawian nationals from virtual slavery.
According to Interpol, Operation Weka, which means “stop” in Swahili, has once again demonstrated how closely migrant smuggling and human trafficking are linked, especially in the current context of the global health crisis.
“These victims could not simply escape the horrific situation they found themselves in and the suffering they endured. This is why INTERPOL’s work does not end there, ”said its Secretary General, Jürgen Stock.
“We will continue to help countries unravel the complex cases, which will undoubtedly lead to more arrests in the months to come,” he added.
