Interpol: Sudan rescues 94 human traffic victims, 85 minors

Interpol said that 200 Sudanese officers took part in Operation Sawiyan, with the Lyon, France-based police agency training and equipping investigators.

By: AP | Paris | Updated: September 10, 2018 1:45:12 pm

Sudan’s President Omar Hassan al-Bashir speaks during a press conference after the oath of the prime minister and first vice president Bakri Hassan Saleh at the palace in Khartoum, Sudan. (Source: Reuters)

Police in Sudan has rescued 94 victims of human trafficking including 85 minors from open-air goldmines near Khartoum and the city’s international airport, among other places.

A statement on Monday by Interpol, which coordinated the Aug. 26-30 operation, said that so far 14 people, 12 of them women, have been arrested.

1m 9s

Omar al-Bashir has 'saved Sudan'

Sudan's foreign minister, Ibrahim Ghandour, says his country has a bright future ahead.

The international police organization said that many of the rescued minors had been found working in illegally-operated goldmines east of Khartoum, where children, including 10-year-olds, handled mercury and cyanide.

The rescued victims came from a half-dozen countries, including Chad, Eritrea, Niger and South Sudan, underscoring the transnational aspect of human trafficking.

Interpol said that 200 Sudanese officers took part in Operation Sawiyan, with the Lyon, France-based police agency training and equipping investigators.