Home

Illegal arms continue to flow into Libya

Reading Time: 3 minutes

A United Nations report concludes that arms have continued to be illicitly transferred to and from Libya on a regular basis.

It states that materiel entering Libya has been of an increasingly sophisticated nature.

External assistance to armed groups has also increased, with fighting groups expanding their air forces, which have been used in attacks against other armed groups and each other, the Libya Herald has reported.

The conclusions were made in the United Nations Libyan Experts Panel final report presented to the Security Council released last week.

Assessing the UN-imposed arms embargo on Libya, the 299-page report said that “arms have continued to be illicitly transferred to and from Libya on a regular basis”.

“While outflows have continued to be moderate, consisting mainly of small arms and light weapons, materiel entering Libya has been of an increasingly sophisticated nature. External assistance to armed groups in terms of direct support, training and technical assistance has also increased.”

“At least two of the armed groups operating in Libya have expanding air forces, which have been used in attacks against other armed groups and each other,”the UN report stated.

The Panel reviewed commercial satellite imagery of relevant Libyan airports and airfields in order to investigate the development of air capabilities.

“The political process that the exceptions to the arms embargo were designed to support has not developed in the manner anticipated, as the relationship between armed groups and political entities remains transactional and transitional,” added the report.

“The Government of National Accord (GNA) has not provided information on the structures of security forces under its control, nor has there been any demonstration of such control.”

“Such issues highlight the need for the continuance of the arms embargo with a clear identification of those armed and security forces that can legitimately benefit from exceptions and exemption requests.”

The Panel continued to investigate deliveries of weapons and ammunition made during the revolution of 2011.

Insurgents on the western front depended on transfers from Benghazi over the sea route to Tunisia and onward to the Nafusa Mountains.

“After a meeting between the late General Abd Al Fattah Younis and foreign representatives in mid-April 2011, it was decided to organise a major delivery to the western front,”said the panel.

The Panel collected over eight accounts of a delivery by sea, paid for by Qatar, of about 40 tonnes of military equipment to Zarzis, allegedly escorted by the Tunisian armed forces to the Dhehiba-Wazin border post with Libya.

– By ANA

Author

MOST READ