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US raps several Arab allies for human trafficking
WASHINGTON, June 12 (Reuters) The United States accused its Arab allies Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar today of being among the world's worst offenders in permitting the sale of people into the sex trade and indentured servitude.
In an annual report on human trafficking, the United States included the four in a list of 16 countries subject to possible US sanctions, including the loss of US aid and US support for loans from the World Bank and International Monetary Fund.
The others in this category were Algeria, Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Iran, Malaysia, Myanmar, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Uzbekistan and Venezuela.
Under US law, these countries have three months to improve their record before being slapped with sanctions. The Bush administration can also choose not to impose sanctions if it deems this appropriate.
''Trafficking
in
persons
is
a
modern-day
form
of
slavery,''
US
Secretary
of
State
Condoleezza
Rice
said
in
an
introduction
to
the
report.
''Perpetrators
prey
on
the
most
weak
among
us,
primarily
women
and
children,
for
profit
and
gain.''
REUTERS
RKM
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