(dpa) The police in Zambia have found the bodies of 27 people from Ethiopia or Somalia who are believed to have entered the country illegally in the capital Lusaka. One person who was still alive was taken to the university hospital, police spokesman Danny Mwale told the German Press Agency. The people were probably suffocated during transport. The exact circumstances initially remained unclear.
The South African country with its 18 million inhabitants has been fighting illegal human trafficking for years. According to the refugee agency UNHCR, Zambia has taken in more than 105,000 refugees from neighboring countries such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi, Angola and Rwanda.
In a regional comparison, the country is considered to be politically rather stable. In 2021, Zambia experienced a peaceful transition of power, but is struggling with many problems – such as widespread poverty, malnutrition and the consequences of climate change. At the end of 2020, Zambia had to declare its insolvency to its international creditors.