A massive illegal settlement tucked deep within the Subri Forest Reserve in the Western Region has been uncovered and demolished by the Ghana Armed Forces in a sweeping military operation.
The community, known as Abrewa Ne Nkran, had become home to more than 10,000residents, made up of both Ghanaians and foreign nationals. According to the military, the settlement was heavily involved in a range of illegal activities, including illegal gold mining(galamsey), prostitution, drug abuse, suspected human trafficking, and counterfeit operations.
Speaking in a video shared on X (formerly Twitter) by JoyNews on Tuesday, April 15, 2025, one of the military officers expressed shock at the scale and diversity of the hidden community.
“It appears this place is a representation of ECOWAS,” he said. “We’ve seen people from Guinea, Niger, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Mali, and other Sahelian countries. And this is supposed to be a rural community. Why are they here?”
While the settlement itself did not show signs of mining activity, the soldier revealed that the surrounding forest area had been devastated by illegal operations.
“You can tell that there’s no actual mining taking place inside the community. All the mining is happening in the forest, and the environmental impact is devastating,” he added.
The officer also shared a chilling account of a young woman rescued during the raid, who was reportedly lured into the settlement under the pretense of work, only to be forced into prostitution by her “madam.”
The operation, which is part of a larger nationwide clampdown on illegal mining, is expected to continue for the next two weeks. Authorities have vowed to completely dismantle the settlement and reclaim the forest reserve, which has been under severe threat due to galamsey activities
