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Children removed from Jewish sect's jungle compound in Mexico


Children and older teenagers have been removed from the jungle compound of a Jewish sect in Mexico following a raid by police, the BBC has learned.


Two members of Lev Tahor were arrested on suspicion of human trafficking and serious sexual offences, including rape, Israel's foreign ministry said.


A three-year-old child removed from the compound has been flown to Israel.


Lev Tahor (Hebrew for Pure Heart) is known for extremist practices and imposing a strict regime on members.


It advocates child marriage, inflicts harsh punishments for even minor transgressions and requires women and girls as young as three years old to completely cover up with robes.


The stricture has earned the group the nickname the Jewish Taliban, because of seeming similarities with the dress code enforced by the Sunni Muslim extremist group which controls Afghanistan.


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