150 Illegal Miners to Appear in Court in South Africa

150 illegal miners in Mpumalanga in South Africa will appear in court this week . This follows the country's crackdown operation called "Vala Umgodi", meaning "close the holes."

In just one year, over 12,000 illegal miners have been arrested across the country as part of the ongoing effort to fight the illegal mining trade.

Over the weekend, six illegal miners were pulled from the Stilfontein mine.

The exact number of miners still underground remains unknown.

Since October, over 1,400 illegal miners have been rescued from various mines around Stilfontein.

Among them were more than 900 Mozambicans and 400 Zimbabweans, and a dozen bodies were also recovered.

The operation which is supported by President Cyril Ramaphosa, tries to block all supplies to miners in order to force them out. A practice which South Africa's High Court says is illegal.