Slavery in Oman
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Slavery existed in the area which was later to become Oman from antiquity until the 1970s. Oman was united with Zanzibar from the 1690s until 1856, and was a significant center of the Indian Ocean slave trade from Zanzibar in East Africa to the Arabian Peninsula and Iran, a central hub of the regional slave trade, which constituted a large part of its economy.
Slavery was finally abolished by Sultan Qaboos bin Said after the 1970 Omani coup d'état, on 23 July 1970. Many members of the Afro-Omani minority are descendants of the former slaves. When classic slavery was abolished, it was replaced by the Kafala system, which has been described as a modern form of slavery.