Six men and one woman were arrested by the police after hundreds of protected birds were seized in various localities, the police said.

An operation conducted by the Administrative Law Enforcement together with officers from the Environment Resources Authority led to the arrests in Kirkop, Gudja and Safi.

These hundreds of birds were illegally imported to Malta from Sudan and Egypt, with 500 of them being found in a Safi farmhouse.

The birds seized included pelicans, flamingos, storks and eagles.