Mauritanian Army sweeps up gold panners in northern region

Nouakchott, Mauritania (PANA) - The Mauritanian army carried out a large sweep of the gold panners by rounding up around 60 individuals in the far north, towards the Algerian border, some of which are classified as a military zone closed to civilian activities, according to news reported on Tuesday by local press.

A dozen vehicles were also seized during the operation.

The arrested individuals are expected to appear in a court in the town of Zouerate (more than 600 km north of Nouakchott).

This appears to be a new episode of the traditional gold panning phenomenon that has taken hold of Mauritanians since 2016, forcing the authorities to legalize a previously unknown activity.

-0- PANA SAS/BEH/KND/VAO 11Feb2020