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Indonesia Detains 43 Australia-Bound Afghans
SURABAYA - Indonesia arrested 43 Afghans who were trying to reach Australia illegally, police said Thursday, a day after Asian nations pledged to work together to tackle people smuggling.
The migrants, including women and children, were arrested in the waters off Madura island in East Java province on Thursday morning, provincial maritime police chief Anang Hidayat told reporters.
"They were seeking asylum in Australia. They were arrested while they were transferring boats. They had no identification documents," he said.
The group had flown from Afghanistan to Jakarta, traveled by bus to Madura island to "take a big boat to Australia", Hidayat said.
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