An Interpol-led operation across 16 countries has resulted in 262 arrests tied to migrant smuggling networks along the Mediterranean Sea and West African Atlantic routes, the agency announced Tuesday. The four-day sweep across North and West Africa, southern Europe, and the Middle East identified 109 potential human trafficking victims, detected 1,715 irregular migrants, and sparked 434 new investigations that are “expected to yield further leads and arrests in the coming weeks and months.”
Among the key interventions, Moroccan authorities rescued a vessel carrying 70 stranded migrants—including 30 minors—who had been at sea for six days. In a separate action, Mauritanian law enforcement intercepted a wooden boat carrying 80 passengers and arrested three suspected organizers.
Source: OCCRP · 2026-11-10