Iraq's Interior Ministry says it dismantled a child-trafficking network in Baghdad

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Iraq's Interior Ministry announced that its Human Trafficking Directorate, working with the Baghdad Karkh First Investigative Court, dismantled a network accused of human trafficking and child exploitation in the capital. The ministry said suspects were detained following intelligence work and field surveillance, and that legal procedures were completed. The operation was carried out on the orders of the ministry's Senior Deputy Interior Minister Hussein al-Awadi and under the supervision of the deputy minister overseeing the Intelligence and Federal Investigations Division, according to the ministry. The suspects were referred to the competent judiciary to complete legal proceedings. The ministry said security operations targeting human trafficking and child exploitation networks would continue. No further details on the number of suspects or victims were immediately available.