Police arrest 42 illegal immigrants
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Updated 3 hrs 31 mins ago
By
ALLAN KISIA
Forty-two foreigners have been arrested while escaping a crackdown
on illegal immigrants in neighbouring Tanzania.
Loitoktok DC Harsama Kellol said the arrested include 39
Ethiopians and three Somalis.
He said an ambush was laid at Embarara near the border early in the morning.
He said an ambush was laid at Embarara near the border early in the morning.
“We initially arrested 21 Ethiopians and three
Somalis in the 4am ambush. The rest were arrested at 9am,” he stated.
Mr Kellol said the three Somalis had documents
indicating they were from Dadaab Refugee Camp while “None of the Ethiopians had
documents.”
Speaking to The Standard on the phone, the DC
noted the crackdown on illegal immigrants is still on, adding that it will even
be intensified.
“I appeal to the public to provide information
on people who might be in the country illegally,” he added.
He further said his office was working closely
with the Tanzanian counterparts to fight illegal immigration. “We know these
people may be fleeing famine and war but rules and regulations must be adhered
to.”
Last month, dozens of Ethiopians died after
suffocating in a container truck and their bodies dumped on the roadside in
Tanzania.
Up to 45 bodies were dumped along a busy forest
highway, a local newspaper reported. Another 72 were found alive and taken to
hospital.
Tanzania is a major transit route for migrants
and is used by smugglers to ferry Somalis and Ethiopians to South Africa and
Europe.
The truck was probably on its way to the
south-western border with Zambia and Malawi, officials said. Illegal immigrants
are often smuggled by local truckers from Tanzania’s commercial capital Dar es
Salaam to border towns.
In January, 20 Somali migrants suffocated to
death as they were being smuggled in a truck.
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