Ministers and state secretaries met this week with the families of the Croatians detained in Zambia, Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said on Wednesday as a media outlet reported that Zambia's authorities transferred their case to a higher court.

“I have nothing new since this morning,” he told press in the eastern city of Osijek when asked if he had any news regarding the eight Croatians detained in Zambia since December on human trafficking charges.

“Except that, the day before yesterday I think, state secretaries and ministers had a meeting with (their) families at the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs,” he added.

Zambian High Court judge Yvonne Chembe decided today to transfer the case of the Croatians to her court, the Croatian 24sata news portal said, adding that the date of the first hearing is not known.

The four Croatian couples were arrested at Ndola airport, Zambia early in December on suspicion of human trafficking and in the validity of documents on the adoption of four children from the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

They have been charged with attempted human trafficking and document forgery, while the children, which have Croatian documents, have been taken from them and placed under Zambian care.