Joint police operation in SE European countries targets human trafficking

A simultaneous police operation in Greece and other southeast European countries led to discovery and rescue of more than 460 young women, all reportedly victims of human trafficking, Athens News Agency reported on Monday.

The raids, part of an operation code-named "Mirage," took place within the framework of the SE European Cooperative Initiative ( SECI), the report said.

Of the 463 women who had fallen victims of forced prostitution, 65 were assisted by refugee agencies and NGOs, it added.

A total of 595 people were involved in human trafficking and 31 were sentenced to prison terms, while 207 were indicted.

In addition, 8,350 illegal immigrants, the overwhelming majority of whom were young males, were traced in the SECI countries since the beginning of the year, while a total of 9,500 were intercepted in 2005, it said.

The "Mirage" operations are held simultaneously in all SECI countries once a month on average.

Source: Xinhua