“Among them were three young boys rescued from an illegally operated Koranic school, where they were allegedly forced to beg for money,” it added.
Four suspected traffickers have been detained awaiting sentencing. Investigations are ongoing to identify additional suspects, it said.
During Operation Horonya, officers carried out checks at the international airport in Bamako, screening passengers’ passports against a range of INTERPOL’s databases.
Key to Operation Horonya was INTERPOL’s database of stolen and lost travel documents that enables police to check the validity of a travel document in seconds and detect its fraudulent use.
The authorities said the operation highlighted a regional connection between organised crime networks: victims were from across the region, and initial reports show that they had been exploited in different countries before their arrival in Bamako.
“INTERPOL will continue to support regional and international cooperation to help investigators identify other suspects and dismantle the criminal groups,” the agency assured.
“Mali serves as major transit country for human traffickers who target the most vulnerable members of society.
“With victims from a range of countries, this operation showed that human trafficking and people smuggling is a truly transnational problem,” said Secretary-General Jürgen Stock.
Abou Sidibe, Head of the INTERPOL National Central Bureau in Bamako, thanked INTERPOL for its operational support and highlighted Mali’s commitment to fighting human trafficking.
During the operation, the Malian government passed a decree on the creation of a police unit dedicated to human trafficking and migrant smuggling.
Operation Horonya, was carried out under the umbrella of INTERPOL’s Project Flyway and it being funded by Norway.
The operation’s major aims are to identify and disrupt the criminal networks involved in people smuggling, human trafficking and related crimes in North Africa.
