Egypt's army says it has arrested 151 Egyptians and 540 foreigners in an operation against illegal gold mining near the Sudanese border, with more than 6,000 others surrendering before the raids began, according to spokesman Ahmed Etman. The military released images it said showed illicit mining and said drone strikes targeted weapons and ammunition depots based on precise coordinates, denying that civilians were hit. The comments follow the killing of at least 72 miners in October airstrikes on a mine on the Sudan-Egypt border, which a rights group blamed on Egyptian forces. Gold smuggling has financed armed groups in Sudan's war, with a UN panel previously estimating that more than half of Sudanese gold leaves the country illegally.
Source: Africanews
