24 July - More than 1,000 people have been arrested in a crackdown on human trafficking and sexual exploitation in Ciudad Juarez

Over 1000 people arrested for human trafficking in Juarez

Federal police arrested more than 1,000 people for their alleged involvement in the crimes of human trafficking and sexual exploitation in northern Mexico, La Jornada newspaper reported on Sunday.

Agents of the federal police in the northern border city of Juárez in the state of Chihuahua arrested 1,030 people, including 530 women, accused of human trafficking and sexual exploitation of minors.

20 underage girls freed

In the sting, authorities also freed 20 underage girls who were being sexually exploited in bars and hotels in the area.

The operation lasted nine hours and involved hundreds of federal and state police agents. The detainees were transferred to the Chihuahua State Public Prosecutor's office.

The Ministry of Public Security in Mexico City released the results of the operation that was conducted last Friday as part of the Amber Alert program. Mexico joined international efforts to spread the use of the Amber alert on April of this year.

Ciudad Juárez is considered one of the most dangerous cities in the world and is often referred to as the murder capital of Mexico. As a critical site for drug traffickers, violence in the city has increased dramatically since President Felipe Calderón intensified the crackdown on organized crime in 2006.