World Bulletin / News Desk

 Sudanese police have freed 21 Eritrean nationals from a human trafficking gang in the eastern part of the country, a police source told Anadolu Agency on Friday.

The source, who spoke anonymously due to restrictions on speaking to media, said police had also arrested seven suspected human traffickers in the same operation, which was carried out in Sudan’s eastern Kassala state on the border with Eritrea.

The same source went on to say that police had raided the traffickers’ compound on Thursday before freeing the captives -- who were being held for ransom -- and arresting the suspects following a brief gunfight.

According to a police statement issued later on Thursday, a joint force dispatched by Kassala state authorities had “raided the compound early Thursday morning and arrested the seven smugglers”.

The same statement went on to note that police had also freed 21 foreign nationals from the smugglers, including ten men, eight women and three children.

“Police also managed to seize three vehicles used by the traffickers to transport immigrants,” the statement read.

Human trafficking remains widespread in most Horn of Africa countries, including Sudan.

Most undocumented immigrants from Africa hope to eventually reach Europe, usually via transit points in Egypt or Libya. 

The European Union recently dispersed over 100 million euros to support Sudanese efforts to control the country’s borders and stem the tide of illegal immigration.