Swiss help European police catch child traffickers
Europol in The Hague supported an operation by 17 countries including Switzerland.
Keystone
Switzerland has participated in a big operation by European police against human trafficking which resulted in the arrest of 70 people, according to Europol.
This content was published on
1 minute
Keystone-SDA/jc
“Europol supported a pan-European operation against trafficking of minors for sexual exploitation, forced begging and labour exploitation,” the European Union’s police cooperation body said in a press releaseExternal link on Friday. Overall results included 34 arrests for “trafficking of human beings” and 36 arrests for “other offences such as robbery, dissemination of child sexual exploitation material and facilitation of illegal immigration”.
More than 127,000 individuals, 63,800 vehicles and 1,100 locations were checked between 17 and 23 June 2019 across the participating countries, according to Europol. “Law enforcement authorities searched private properties, commercial establishments, hotels, buses and train stations, ferry ports, airports and border crossings”.
Pan-European collaboration also allowed identification of 206 potential victims, 53 of which were confirmed to be minors. These activities “enabled the initiation of 31 new cases of human trafficking across the different participating countries”, says Europol.
The operation was led by the UK and included 15 EU countries plus Switzerland and Iceland.
More
More
Human trafficking remains a problem for Switzerland
This content was published on
Taken together with the 113 ongoing consultations from previous years, FIZ says the number of cases of women being trafficked into the country (many for prostitution) remains high. In 2017, FIZ provided support for 228 women. To combat the problem, FIZExternal link has joined forces with Church groups to provide better care for the victims. The Zurich-based entity will receive funding…
Swiss political class divided over reform of EU asylum pact
This content was published on
As a result of the EU's Migration and Asylum Pact, Switzerland must adapt five laws linked to the Schengen/Dublin agreements.
AI can reduce the number of animals needed for research
This content was published on
Swiss researchers have developed a new, AI-supported method that analyses the behaviour of mice in the laboratory more efficiently.
Geneva Conventions conference on Middle East scheduled for March 2025
This content was published on
The conference on the Middle East of the 196 States party to the Geneva Conventions, organised by Switzerland, will take place in Geneva in March.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
More Nigerian women and asylum seekers being trafficked
This content was published on
Last year, the proportion of human trafficking victims who are also asylum seekers tripled in the Zurich region, according to a Swiss advocacy group’s annual report.
Thai woman jailed for running human trafficking ring
This content was published on
A Swiss court has sentenced a 58-year old Thai woman to more than ten years in jail in one of the biggest human trafficking cases in the country.
This content was published on
Switzerland’s Federal Supreme Court has acquitted a Romanian couple accused of trafficking Roma people who ended up begging.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.