About 71 percent of human trafficking victims are female and one-third are children, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) [official website] said in a report [materials] released Wednesday. Though many are victims of sexual exploitation and forced labor, many are reportedly used as beggars, for sham marriages, benefit fraud and pornography. The report emphasizes the connection between the presence of armed groups and human trafficking. “People escaping from war and persecution are particularly vulnerable to becoming victims of trafficking. The urgency of their situation might lead them to make dangerous migration decisions,” said [press release] UNODC Executive Director Yury Fedotov. The armed groups also engage in the trafficking by coercing young men to engage in combat or labor and women and girls are forced into marriages or sexual slavery. Over the past 13 years 158 countries have criminalized human trafficking, but Fedotov warns that the rate of convictions is too low, and he called for more resources to identify and assist trafficking victims.

Human trafficking [JURIST op-ed] is one of the most controversial issues affecting the international community. In October the Egyptian Parliament voted to enact new legislation [JURIST report] aimed at combating the growing number of human traffickers along its coast. In September UNICEF released a report [JURIST report] showing millions of children have been driven from their homes due to violence and conflict, facing dangers such as malnourishment and dehydration, trafficking, kidnapping, rape and murder. In February UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stressed [JURIST report] that increased funding and international cooperation are needed to successfully combat human trafficking. With a vote of 14 in favor, the UN Security Council last year introduced [press release] a resolution to allow the EU to inspect and seize vehicles suspected of smuggling migrants. Authorized under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, the resolution permits certain nations to board ships in order to prevent human trafficking [JURIST report]. US Attorney General Loretta Lynch announced in 2015 that the Department of Justice will fund [JURIST report] a $44 million grant to fight human trafficking.