Children rescued from ongoing child sexual abuse in WA

Three Australian children have been rescued from allegedly ongoing child sexual abuse following a police operation on child offences.

Officers from Western Australian and Australian Federal Police (AFP) executed more than 60 search warrants in metropolitan and regional locations of WA over the last week.

There were 45 people charged with 149 offences, while police said more than 35,000 images and videos of child exploitation material were seized.

"It has to be remembered that child exploitation material is not pornography, it is direct evidence of children being abused," WA Police Sex Crime Division Detective Superintendent Gordon Fairman said.

Fairman said identifying, locating and rescuing children involved was the highest priority for WA Police.

"People who manufacture, distribute or possess child exploitation material may believe they are anonymous, hiding behind a computer," he said.

"Let me tell you that they are not. As this operation shows, we can identify them, we can locate them and we can prosecute them."

This arrests come as National Child Protection Week begins across Australia, with the campaign highlighting the right of children to grow up safely.

The number of reports of child exploitation across Australia has doubled from the previous year.

More than 33,000 reports of child exploitation were received in 2021, police said.

"These figures show the scale of the problem and how we need everyone in the community, parents, teachers, carers, to be alert," AFP Detective Superintendent Graeme Marshall said.

"Let this serve as a warning to anyone who produces or shares child abuse material – you will be caught."