Arrested 33 people in connection with a WhatsApp group

Spanish police say 33 people have been arrested globally in connection with a group of WhatsApp for images of child sexual abuse and other violent content.

The many "extreme" images shared in the group had been "normalized by most of its members," said the force.

The arrests were made in 11 different countries on three continents, but most - 17 - were in Spain.

Many of those arrested or suspected in Spain are under the age of 18, including a 15-year-old boy.

In Uruguay, police arrested two people, one of whom was a mother who abused her daughter and sent pictures of this to the group.

In another case, a 29-year-old man was arrested not only for downloading the images, but also for encouraging other members of the group to get in touch with the girls, especially migrants who were unlikely to go to the police.

How were they tracked?
The Spanish national police began investigating the group more than two years ago, after receiving an email with a suggestion.

They then asked for help from Europol, Interpol and the police in Ecuador and Costa Rica.

In addition to Spain and Uruguay, arrests have been made in the United Kingdom, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Peru, India, Italy, France, Pakistan and Syria.

What did the group share?
In a statement, police said the group shared "pedophile content, sometimes of extreme gravity, along with other legal content that was not suitable for minors because of their extreme nature."

Some members of the group even created "stickers" - small easily shareable digital images, similar to emojis - of children who were mistreated.

Police also said that all those arrested in Spain were men or boys and that they come from a mix of social and cultural backgrounds.

One of these men had fled his home to Italy during a search. He went to a relative's home in Salamanca, unaware that the Spanish national police had ordered his arrest.

The operation will now focus on identifying abused children in the images.