UN sanctions trafficking kingpins

The UN Security Council has sanctioned six leaders of human trafficking networks operating in Libya – the first time traffickers have been added to an international sanctions list. BBC News reports that they are four Libyans, including the head of a regional coast guard unit, and two Eritrean nationals. Smugglers have taken advantage of insecurity in Libya to move hundreds of thousands of migrants by sea to Europe. The sanctions – a global travel ban and an assets freeze – were the result of an internationally-backed Dutch proposal. The unprecedented sanctions follow widespread outrage at the end of 2017 after CNN aired footage showing the auctioning of migrant men as slaves in Libya.