A coordinated, cross-border operation codenamed Global Chain ran from June 8 to June 12, led by INTERPOL with Europol, Frontex and Ameripol, identifying 2,070 victims, making 1,024 arrests, and opening 465 investigations across 59 countries spanning Africa, the Americas, Asia and Europe.

Across cases, victims have been identified in Brazil, Argentina, Belgium and elsewhere, with investigations into online scams and coercive networks tied to sexual exploitation and forced labor.

Notable activity included Moldova detaining suspected child traffickers, North Macedonia using drones to inspect construction sites for forced labor, Brazil conducting open-border controls and campaigns against sexual exploitation, Argentina raiding sites and rescuing child labor victims, Belgium dismantling an underage exploitation network, and Romanian airport checks.

In Brazil, an international network trafficking people to Cambodia for online fraud was dismantled, with 406 victims identified and Red and Blue Notices issued for suspects; Belgium arrested 17 individuals for recruiting underage women into online networks for prostitution across Belgium and France.

In Cyprus, 17 targeted operations at bars and apartments yielded no identified trafficking victims during the missions.

Portugal’s operation involved over 700 personnel, identifying primarily adult female victims—mostly for sexual exploitation—with smaller shares for forced labor, forced begging and other crimes; younger victims were often tied to begging and petty offenses.

Among identified victims in Portugal, 64.2% were trafficked for sexual exploitation, 20.9% for other forced criminal activities, 11.3% for forced labor, and 2.1% for other exploitation; among minors, 86.4% were exploited sexually.

Victims originated from 45 countries, with the largest groups from Argentina, Colombia, Venezuela, Moldova and Nepal; about 10% were minors from the Americas subjected to sexual exploitation.

The effort included border and transport hub checks and rapid intelligence sharing through INTERPOL’s I-24/7 system, supported by two international command centres in Skopje and Rio de Janeiro to coordinate cross-border actions.

Law enforcement targeted networks involved in sexual exploitation, forced labor and coerced begging, resulting in 334 trafficking offences arrests and 690 related-crime arrests.

Coverage and context highlight cases such as Belgium’s trafficking of underage girls via social media and concerns about Vietnamese apprentices facing exploitation in Germany.

Participating countries include Albania, Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Colombia, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Mexico, Netherlands, United States, United Kingdom, Uruguay, and 59 countries in total.