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Firearm News

Afghanistan,Libya

Afghanistan and Libya: All Weapons in the Hands of Islamic Terrorists

22 September 2021

Corriere della Sera (italy)

Afghanistan, Libya and Syria are the three crises that today fuel the archipelago of Islamic extremism. Three countries that are out of control and where Western intervention has increased the risk to global security. In Doha, in recent months, the Americans negotiated the withdrawal from Afghanistan with the Taliban, promising: we will leave, but you will not allow al Qaeda or other extremist groups to operate in the country. We know how that went. And when countries... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: Corriere della Sera (italy)

40572

Algeria,Tunisia,Morocco,Libya

Algeria Seizes Many Guns at Tunisian and Libyan Borders [FR]

16 November 2016

Réalités (Tunisia)

[Translated summary: Algerian Customs have seized a large number of firearms at the borders with Tunisia and Libya. The guns are very sophisticated and equipped with new technologies. They belong to trafficking networks and terrorists from Libya, where there are 20,000 illegal firearms in circulation.] Les services de la Douane algérienne ont intensifié récemment leur présence au niveau des frontières avec le Maroc et la Tunisie et ce en ayant recours à d'autres... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: Réalités (Tunisia)

40189

Italy,Russia,Moldova,Libya,Ukraine

Jihadi Tomb Raiders, Italian Mafia Sell Antiquities for ISIS Guns

18 October 2016

Daily Beast (USA)

A fuzzy photo shows the decapitated marble head of an ancient Roman statue; the grainy image is standing in for the gilded sales bills usually displayed in the world's finest auction houses. There are no certificates of authenticity or patrimony for these artifacts either, just maps with red markings. This is no ordinary art show. The maps in question show ancient Roman and Greek tombs that have been pillaged in Libya. These artifacts have been put on the market by... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: Daily Beast (USA)

40046

Saudi Arabia,Afghanistan,Bulgaria,Italy,Syria,Czech Republic,Iran,Libya,Yemen,United Kingdom,Ukraine,United States,South Sudan,France

World Powers Accused of Violating Arms Trade Treaty [ES]

23 August 2016

IPS Noticias

[Translated summary: Human Rights organisations and military analysts accuse the United States, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, France and Italy of violating the Arms Trade Treaty by selling to countries in conflict. Experts say that effectively implementing the treaty could save millions of lives.] NACIONES UNIDAS - Los grandes proveedores de armamento violan el tratado que regula su comercio y que se propone frenar el flujo de armas pequeñas y ligeras hacia las zonas de... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: IPS Noticias

39850

Libya

Gun Registration, Amnesty Launched in Two Libyan Cities

11 August 2016

Libya Herald

In a move driven possibly more by hope than expectation, the military police in Marj have unveiled a gun amnesty programme for residents to encourage them to hand over their weapons or register them. Those in possession of firearms have 30 days in which to hand them in if they are heavy weapons, or register them for their personal protection, if they are classed as "light". The move follows a similar one in Tobruk, where residents have until 15 September to hand in or... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: Libya Herald

39679

Ukraine,Russia,Iraq,Syria,Libya

Ukraine Once Again a Trove for Black Market Gun Trafficking

25 July 2016

New York Times, Reuters

SLOVIANSK/MOSCOW — On Feb. 12 last year, the same day that a ceasefire ended the worst of the fighting in eastern Ukraine between rebels and government forces, a former rebel fighter seized a chance to turn his inside knowledge of the conflict into hard cash. He traveled to a spot on the Russian-Ukrainian border where he retrieved a cache of weapons hidden there earlier by his comrades in the pro-Russian rebel movement. Four days later, shortly before 6:00 p.m., he... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: New York Times, Reuters

39613

Asia,United States,Africa,Libya,Yemen,Iraq,Syria

Middle East: Militias Use Facebook Groups to Sell Weapons

6 April 2016

New York Times

A terrorist hoping to buy an antiaircraft weapon in recent years needed to look no further than Facebook, which has been hosting sprawling online arms bazaars, offering weapons ranging from handguns and grenades to heavy machine guns and guided missiles. The Facebook posts suggest evidence of large-scale efforts to sell military weapons coveted by terrorists and militants. The weapons include many distributed by the United States to security forces and their proxies in... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: New York Times

39042

United States,Botswana,Algeria,Libya,South Africa,Kenya,Rwanda,Djibouti

7 African Nations More Effective at Gun Control than the US

11 January 2016

Mail & Guardian (Johannesburg)

In a BBC interview last July, US President Barack Obama admitted that failure to pass "common sense gun safety laws" in the US has been the greatest frustration of his presidency. Since he took office in 2008, there have been repeated mass shootings including the 2011 Tucson Arizona shooting in which Gabrielle Giffords, then a member of Congress and 18 others were shot in a supermarket parking lot. Six people died that day. Another shooting was at Emanuel African... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: Mail & Guardian (Johannesburg)

38991

Africa,North Africa,Russia,Syria,Mali,Qatar,Turkey,Libya,Egypt,Chad,Somalia,Nigeria,Niger

Libya's Guns Free-For-All Fuels Region's Turmoil

22 March 2014

St Louis Post-Dispatch (Missouri)

TRIPOLI — At the heart of the Libyan capital, the open-air Fish Market was once a place where residents went to buy everything from meat and seafood to clothes and pets. Now it's Tripoli's biggest arms market, with tables displaying pistols and assault rifles. Ask a vendor, and he can pull out bigger machine guns to sell for thousands of dollars. Libya, where hundreds of militias hold sway and the central government is virtually powerless, is awash in millions of... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: St Louis Post-Dispatch (Missouri)

38494

Germany,Colombia,United States,Libya,Georgia,Russia,Mexico

Banned German Firearms Being Sold in Colombia

1 March 2014

Deutsche Welle

German law prohibits the export of weapons to crisis or conflict regions. But guns sporting the label "Made in Germany" are being sold in war-torn Colombia. Manufacturers have denied any involvement in illegal exports. A person who wants to buy a gun legally in Colombia must be at least 25 years old, provide proof of income and a gun license and possess no criminal record. The arms trade in the South American country is a state monopoly run by the weapons manufacturer... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: Deutsche Welle

38422

Libya,France,Qatar

After Decades With Few Guns, Almost Every Libyan Household Has One

25 February 2014

PolicyMic

In a country where civilian gun ownership was rare for decades, a sudden inundation of small arms means plenty of people will likely get shot. One recent afternoon, Ahmed, 26, was driving around Tripoli with his brother Bashir, 24. Without warning, the driver in the car in front of them slammed his brakes. Ahmed, who nearly rear-ended the offending vehicle, honked his horn. The other driver got out of his car. A shouting match became physical and the man went back to... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: PolicyMic

38412

West Africa,Central African Republic,Sudan,Nigeria,Congo (DRC),Cameroon,Libya

Arms Smuggling to Nigerian Criminals Threatens Cameroon

21 February 2014

IRIN (UN News)

YAOUNDE — Recent arms seizures and arrests of traffickers in Cameroon's Far North Region have highlighted the escalating insecurity caused by Boko Haram in neighbouring Nigeria and the impact of the unrest in the Central African Republic (CAR) and Sudan. In January, Cameroon's security forces arrested a man attempting to transport 655 guns to Nigeria. In September 2013, 5,400 AK-47 rifles were seized on a pick-up truck in Maroua, the capital of Far North Region,... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: IRIN (UN News)

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Libya,West Asia,Egypt,Syria,Mali,North Africa,Italy,France,United States,United Kingdom,Russia,Belarus,China,Algeria,Caribbean,South America,Niger,Chad,European Union,Tunisia

Post-Uprising Gun Proliferation is Destabilising the Middle East

20 February 2014

Fair Observer

In recent years, as order in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) eroded between uprisings and armed conflicts, the desire for arms amongst a wide range of actors became one more destabilizing factor in the complexities of each situation. However, arms proliferation is nothing new to the MENA region. Whether it was through state actors or black market trading, weapons have circulated throughout the Middle East and North Africa for many years. Today, arms... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: Fair Observer

38403

China,Congo (DRC),Germany,United Kingdom,Myanmar,Israel,European Union,Italy,Spain,Egypt,France,Libya,Saudi Arabia

European Arms Sales to Middle East Reach Record Level, NGOs Concerned

1 February 2014

Ekklesia (UK)

European Union countries licensed arms exports in 2012 valued at €39.9 billion, according to newly released figures. This included a record €9.7 billion in sales to the Middle East – a 22 percent increase on sales in the previous year. The statistics are revealed in the Fifteenth Annual Report on Control of Exports of Military Technology and Equipment. The European Network Against the Arms Trade (ENAA) says that the figures show little change in arms export... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: Ekklesia (UK)

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Libya

Libya Criminalises Gun Ownership But Critics Question Enforcement

19 December 2013

Magharebia (USA)

TRIPOLI — Libya's General National Congress (GNC) on Sunday (December 15th) passed a law criminalising possession of all kinds of weapons, light and heavy, as well as explosives. The new legislation states that if weapons are not handed over within 90 days, the person will be liable to a prison sentence between three to 10 years and a fine of up to 20,000 Libyan dinars. A financial incentive to be assessed by the defence ministry will also be granted to those who... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: Magharebia (USA)

38205

Saudi Arabia,Libya,India,Georgia,Egypt,Yemen,Vietnam,Turkey,Syria,Germany,Bahamas

Questions Asked Over Germany's Arms Exports

16 December 2013

Deutsche Welle

For a long time, arms exports to regions in conflict were taboo for the German government. However, the growing number of arms deals with Middle Eastern countries like Saudi Arabia or Qatar, or with Asian countries like India and Indonesia suggests that these could soon become a pillar of German foreign and security policy. This, at least, is the warning expressed in this year's weapons exports report published in Berlin on Monday (16.12.2013) by the Joint Church and... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: Deutsche Welle

38196

Greece,Sierra Leone,Libya,Ukraine

Ukraine Confirms Permit Issued for Guns Seized En Route to Libya

12 November 2013

Ukrainian Journal

KIEV – The State Service of Export Controls of Ukraine has confirmed the issuing of a one-time permit to Ukrspecexport subsidiary Ukrinmash State Enterprise for the supply of small arms ammunition to Libya, noting however that they have no information about the specific content of the military cargo on board of the Sierra Leone-flagged Nour M ship, which was detained in Greece. "In 2013, after inter-agency coordination, the State Service of Export Control of Ukraine... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: Ukrainian Journal

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Sierra Leone,Greece,Ukraine,Syria,Libya,Turkey

Greek Coastguard Halts Ship Carrying 20,000 Kalashnikovs

8 November 2013

Greek Reporter

According to sources, the cargo ship "nourm" flagged with Sierra Leone, transferred a large amount of weapons. It was identified yesterday evening near Imia and was escorted to the port of Symi this morning. After an investigation, the cargo ship had troubled the authorities in the past for drug trafficking and when the port board appeared, changed its direction. Eventually, the ship stopped and was led to the port of Symi, under the port escort. The ship had started... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: Greek Reporter

38059

Libya,Algeria,Tunisia

Tunisia, Algeria Work Together to Combat Gun Smuggling

25 September 2013

Magharebia (USA)

Terrorist groups are looking to profit from porous borders to smuggle weapons into Tunisia, local law agencies and international police organisations warn. "Tunisia is living with the threat of the proliferation of weapons because it is a neighbour of Libya," Theoneste Mutsindashyak, the head of the Regional Centre on Small Arms, said at a recent Interpol conference in Algeria. Tunisian Interior Minister Lotfi Ben Jeddou raised the same alarm to National Constituent... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: Magharebia (USA)

37915

Malta,Libya

Licensed Maltese Gun Dealer Charged with Illegal Gun, Ammo Sales

23 September 2013

Tripoli Post (Libya)

A 31-year-old Libyan citizen from Tripoli married to a Maltese woman and residing in Malta, was Monday morning arraigned in court along with a Maltese man after 40,000 bullets were found in the Libyan's car on Saturday following weeks of surveillance by the Malta police. The Libyan, Feraj Issa Ali Yacoob, and Michael Azzopardi, a 55-year old Maltese, appeared in court on charges of illegally selling ammunition to Libyan organisations when they knew or could suspect... (GunPolicy.org)

Read More: Tripoli Post (Libya)

37923