Interpol Arrests 3,744 Suspects in Global Crackdown on Human Trafficking Across 119 Countries
en01.web.id – France. The International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) has announced the arrest of 3,744 criminal suspects in a large-scale global law enforcement operation targeting human trafficking and migrant smuggling networks operating across national borders. The coordinated crackdown involved police forces from 119 countries and marked one of Interpol’s most extensive anti-trafficking operations to date.
The operation, codenamed Operation Liberterra III, was conducted from November 10 to November 21, 2025, under the coordination of Interpol’s headquarters in Lyon, France. Approximately 14,000 law enforcement officers participated worldwide, carrying out synchronized raids, border checks, transport inspections, and intelligence-led investigations in identified high-risk locations.
According to Interpol, the operation was launched in response to a sharp increase in reports of human trafficking and migrant smuggling observed throughout 2024 and 2025. Criminal networks exploited armed conflicts, economic instability, and rising global migration pressures to recruit victims through deceptive job offers, false promises of legal migration, and fraudulent education opportunities.
During the operation, authorities uncovered multiple forms of exploitation, including forced labor, sexual exploitation, and organized migrant smuggling via land, sea, and air routes. Many victims were found to have been transported across borders using forged documents, held under coercive conditions, and forced to repay inflated “transport debts” to criminal groups.
Interpol reported that, in addition to the arrests, law enforcement agencies identified and safeguarded 4,414 individuals believed to be victims of human trafficking. Authorities also recorded 12,992 people linked to or affected by irregular migration schemes, cases which are now being handled in accordance with national legal frameworks. The findings triggered the opening of at least 720 new criminal investigations worldwide.
Interpol Secretary General Jürgen Stock said the results demonstrate the evolving nature of organized crime networks.
“Human trafficking and migrant smuggling are highly organized, transnational crimes. This operation shows that only through strong international cooperation can we identify offenders, protect victims, and dismantle these criminal networks,” Stock said in an official statement.
Investigators found that many of the dismantled networks operated with layered structures, involving local recruiters, document forgers, transport coordinators, and exploiters in destination countries. Interpol also noted shifting trafficking routes, with increasing movements of victims from Asia and Latin America toward Africa and Europe, reflecting changes in global migration patterns.
Interpol emphasized that Operation Liberterra III is part of a broader, ongoing strategy to combat transnational organized crime. The agency confirmed that similar multinational operations will continue, as human trafficking and migrant smuggling remain among the most serious threats to global security and human dignity.
Tim Redaksi
(rd/ks/jk)