More than 1,000 people were arrested and more than 2,000 potential victims were identified during a five-day operation against human trafficking carried out across 59 countries.
The crackdown, code-named Operation GLOBAL CHAIN, took place from 8 to 12 June 2026 and focused on trafficking for sexual exploitation, forced criminality and forced begging, with a particular focus on underage victims, Europol announced on Monday.
A total of 1,024 suspects were arrested, including 334 suspected of human trafficking, while 690 were arrested for other crimes.
Investigators also identified 201 additional suspected traffickers as part of ongoing investigations.
Police and partner agencies identified 2,070 victims and potential victims — 1,908 adults and 162 minors — during the operation.
The agency said 465 new investigations were opened and 80 cases of document fraud were detected.
The majority of victims were female and adult, and 64.2% were trafficked for sexual exploitation, with 20.9% for forced criminality, 11.3% for forced labour and 1.5% for forced begging. Among underage victims, 86.4% were trafficked for sexual exploitation.
Where victims were identified and how the operation was run
Potential victims were reported from 45 countries, with most from Colombia, Argentina, Venezuela, Nepal and Moldova, Europol said.
Many had been trafficked across borders and continents.
More than 40,000 officers took part, including law enforcement, border guards, labour inspectorates and tax and customs authorities.
Officers checked 565,470 people, 360,317 identity documents, 140,737 vehicles and 20,342 locations, and carried out checks linked to 6,133 flights and vessels.
The operation was coordinated with support from Europol, Frontex and INTERPOL, and was conducted under EMPACT — an EU framework for tackling serious organised crime — with Austria as action leader and Romania as co-leader.
Two coordination centres were set up to share information between participating countries — one in Skopje, North Macedonia, covering Europe, Asia and Africa, and another in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, run by Ameripol to coordinate activities in the Americas.
Europol said several national investigations were linked to the wider operation, including 17 arrests and 22 minor victims identified in Belgium, the safeguarding of five victims and the seizure of more than EUR 73,000 in France, and the seizure of more than EUR 840,000 in cash in Ireland, where one suspect was arrested.
In the United States, authorities arrested 16 people on charges linked to sexual exploitation trafficking and identified 22 victims, including 12 minors.
