Ten people in Alabama were arrested - five of them accused pimps - and two children placed in protective services as part of a nationwide crackdown on child sex trafficking.

Operation Cross Country X, a nationwide law enforcement initiative led by the FBI, took place last week throughout the U.S. The effort focuses on underage victims of prostitution. Nationwide, FBI Director James Comey announced today, 82 minors were rescued and 239 traffickers and their associates arrested as part of the operation.

In Birmingham, Operation Cross Country X led to the arrest of five in the arrest of five pimps. Five women ranging in age from 18-34 were also arrested - three for previous warrants and two as a result of OCC X. Two children, ages five months and seven years, were taken into the custody of the Alabama Department of Human Resources, but authorities say those children were not being trafficked.

The Shelby County Sheriff's Office, Pelham Police Department, Homewood Police Department, Vestavia Hills Police Department and the Birmingham Police Department took part in Operation Cross Country X.

Among those arrested in Alabama are: Kheliam Jamar Rountree, 33, human trafficking, child endangerment, and unlawful possession of marijuana; Aaron Lee Byrd Jr, 22, human trafficking and obstruction of justice; Elaina Josephine Logan, 25, promoting prostitution; Devon Johnson, 22, promoting prostitution; and Terkeria Sherell Simmons, 28, chemical endangerment of a child and unlawful possession of marijuana.

The names and charges of the other five arrested in Alabama have not yet been made public.

Lt. Clay Hammac, head of the Shelby County Drug Enforcement Task Force, said his team assisted with last week's operation. Multiple victims were identified and resources were provided to those victims, he said.

Also during the operation, multiple offenders were identified and subsequently charged. The state charges against Rountree, Byrd, Logan, Johnson and Sherell, were obtained by the Shelby County Drug Enforcement Task Force, however, additional federal charges are expected to follow by the FBI.

"The most important thing to recognize is lives were potentially saved, and this fact should be celebrated,'' Hammac said. "We are grateful for the partnership we share with the FBI and all of our federal, state, and local partners. The success of this operation is credited to the long-term planning and investigation by the FBI. It is my sincere hope that these offenders are fairly and justly prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."

The results were announced by Comey and National Center for Missing and Exploited Children Director John Clark at the International Association of Chiefs of Police convention in San Diego. This is the 10th Operation Cross Country, and this year the effort extended beyond the U.S. to include Cambodia, Canada, the Philippines and Thailand.

Operation Cross Country X is part of the FBI's Innocent Lost Initiative, which began in 2003. Since the inception of the program, there have been more than 6,000 child identifications and locations.

"Operation Cross Country aims to shine a spotlight into the darkest corners of our society that seeks to prey on the most vulnerable of our population,'' Comey said in a prepared statement. "As part of this effort, we are not only looking to root out those who engage in the trafficking of minors, but through our Office of Victim Assistance, we offer a lifeline to minors to help them escape from a virtual prison no person ever deserves."

Operations took place in a number of locations, including hotels, truck stops and street corners. "Child sex trafficking is a global problem and we must throw every resource we can at combating it,'' Clark said, also in a prepared statement. "All of us at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children are proud to work side by side with the FBI and their law enforcement partners as we work tirelessly every day to find and rescue child victims and while ensuring that those responsible for this horrible crime are held accountable."