Interpol busts global human trafficking network, rescues 4,400 victims

By Rédaction Africanews and AP

Cross-border law enforcement agency Interpol says it has arrested more than 3,700 people as part of a global crackdown on human traffickers and migrant smugglers.

More than 4,400 potential victims have been protected by the operation, the organisation said on Monday.

Operation Liberterra III took place over eleven days last November, across 119 countries and involved 14,000 police officers.

Interpol highlighted cases involving South Americans and Asians in Africa, saying there appeared to be an emerging change in human trafficking that contrasts with past patterns of African victims being trafficked abroad.

“Criminal networks are evolving, exploiting new routes, digital platforms and vulnerable populations,” Interpol Secretary General Valdecy Urquiza said in a statement.

“Identifying these patterns allows law enforcement to anticipate threats, disrupt networks earlier and better protect victims.

Trafficking scams remained a serious concern, with migrants intercepted from dangerous routes along the coasts of Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Morocco and Algeria and land networks in Peru, Brazil and other countries, Interpol said.

Victims in Africa often are recruited through the pretext of foreign employment. Traffickers charge high fees and force victims to recruit friends and family in exchange for improved conditions, furthering a pyramid scheme model, Interpol said.

Authorities in the West and Central African countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Senegal and Sierra Leone reported law enforcement action that rescued more than 200 victims and disrupted “multiple recruitment and exploitation hubs.”

A 2025 cybercrime crackdown in Africa led to the arrest of 1,209 suspects who targeted 88,000 people.

In Asia, authorities discovered 450 workers in a single raid on a compound in Myanmar, Interpol said.