Interpol’s Operation Ramz nets 200 arrests in 13 MENA states

Interpol’s Operation Ramz marks the first cross-region collaboration in the Middle East, with law-enforcement from 13 MENA countries working alongside Interpol and private partners to conduct a five‑month series of investigations. The operation led to the identification of nearly 583 suspected cybercriminals across the Arab world, the discovery of hundreds of compromised devices, and the notification of almost 4,000 victims.

Countries involved included Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Tunisia, and the UAE, in what Interpol terms a landmark coordinated effort. Authorities seized 53 servers and dozens of mobile phones used in criminal schemes, and 201 suspects were arrested, according to Interpol.

Private partners contributing threat intelligence and data included Group-IB, Kaspersky, the Shadowserver Foundation, Team Cymru, and TrendAI, with Team Cymru’s Jacomo Piccolini noting the event demonstrates how cross-border cooperation can address regional cybercrime. The operation also featured a coordination meeting held in Doha, Qatar, last year, which helped establish the framework for Ramz as a long‑term regional cyber operations model.