Police in Niger say they have rescued 232 victims of sex trafficking as well as forced labor in an operation in the capital Niamey.
According to Interpol, some of those rescued were girls as young as 10.
Officials deployed over 100 police officers for this major operation involving series of raids lasting 10 days in January.
Other details provided by the police in Niger revealed that the victims rescued included 46 children, mostly locals forced into sex work in hostels and slums.
There were some 180 Ghanaian men who were also rescued after they were caught up in enslavement despite being promised jobs online.
These men were recruited online with the promise of “decent work”, according to Interpol.
They only arrived in Niger to be locked up and their documents confiscated.
According to police many of the children rescued were taken from their families, forced to beg at markets and bus stations.
In a statement Barka Dankassoua, head of the Interpol National Central Bureau in Niamey said “Operation Sarraounia has shed much light on several criminal groups and trafficking routes.”
“The skills our officers have learned will be put to good use as we follow up on a number of leads,” he adds.
Interpol further said in a statement that “the young victims were safeguarded and received immediate medical attention, revealing a number of serious physical conditions, including advanced human papillomavirus infections.”
“Whether it’s children, men or women, traffickers show little regard for the health and well-being of victims, they are simply a commodity to make money,” said Jürgen Stock, INTERPOL Secretary General.
“As vital as it is to track and arrest those behind these crimes, we also need to ensure that those rescued are protected and respected throughout the police process,” he concluded.
Niger has been making efforts to address issues of trafficking by increasing convictions last year.
It has also trained more law enforcement officers than in previous years but still struggles to bring the rate of trafficking down.
Source: Africafeeds.com
