Iraqi Human Trafficking Ring

(Berlin) Approximately 100 mostly Kurdish Iraqis have been smuggled into Germany in the last four weeks for further transit to Sweden and Denmark. It hasn't been reported how they got into Germany.

German police in Bavaria and Lower Saxony arrested nine Iraqis suspected of operating the human trafficking ring which is believed to encompass connections in Denmark, the Czech Republic, Italy, Greece, Sweden and Syria. It's reported that the traffickers subjected their human cargo to inhuman conditions.

Having watched the reported paths of human traffickers in Europe, this case is the first I've heard of that starts in Iraq and ends largely in Sweden. Furthermore, it's customary for reports to indicate the sex of people being smuggled, which is usually female, however, that information is missing from reports of the Iraq-to-Sweden trafficking ring. This is important information since women are smuggled primarily for prostitution whereas men are smuggled for entirely different, and possibly more ominous, purposes. Even so, I'd guess they're smuggling females.