Libya arms fueling conflicts in Syria, Mali and beyond

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/09/us-libya-arms-un-idUSBRE93814Y20130409

Libya arms fueling conflicts in Syria, Mali and beyond: U.N. experts

By Michelle Nichols

(Reuters) - Weapons are spreading from
Libya at an "alarming rate," fueling conflicts in Mali,
Syria and elsewhere and boosting the arsenals of extremists and criminals in
the region, according to a U.N. report published on Tuesday.

The report by the U.N. Security Council's Group of Experts - who monitor an
arms embargo imposed on Libya at the start of
an uprising in 2011 which ousted leader Muammar Gaddafi - said the North
African state had become a key source of weapons in the region as its
nascent government struggles to exert authority.

Libyan government security forces remain weak and militias, made up of
former rebel fighters, hold power on the ground.

"Cases, both proven and under investigation, of illicit transfers from Libya
in violation of the embargo cover more than 12 countries and include heavy
and light weapons, including man-portable air defense systems, small arms
and related ammunition and explosives and mines," the experts wrote in the
report.

"Illicit flows from the country are fuelling existing conflicts in Africa
and the Levant and enriching the arsenals of a range of non-State actors,
including terrorist groups," according to the 94-page report, which was
dated February 15 but published on Tuesday.

"The proliferation of weapons from Libya continues at an alarming rate," the
report said.

The experts said transfers of arms to
<http://www.reuters.com/places/syria?lc=int_mb_1001> Syria - where a
two-year-old civil war has killed more than 70,000 people - had been
organized from various locations in Libya, including Misrata and Benghazi,
via <http://www.reuters.com/places/turkey> Turkey or northern Lebanon.

"The significant size of some shipments and the logistics involved suggest
that representatives of the Libyan local authorities might have at least
been aware of the transfers, if not actually directly involved," the experts
said.

The report also found that in the past year flows of Libyan weapons to
<http://www.reuters.com/places/egypt?lc=int_mb_1001> Egypt appeared to have
increased significantly.

"While trafficking from Libya to
<http://www.reuters.com/places/egypt?lc=int_mb_1001> Egypt represents a
challenge primarily for Egypt's internal security, in particular in relation
to armed groups in the Sinai, some of the materiel appears to have crossed
Egypt to further destinations, including the Gaza Strip," the experts wrote.

Security in the Sinai desert region, which borders
<http://www.reuters.com/places/israel?lc=int_mb_1001> Israel and is home to
a number of tourist resorts, has deteriorated since the ousting of Egyptian
President Hosni Mubarak in a popular uprising two years ago.

ACCESS TO NEW WEAPONS

The report said that the trafficking of arms from Libya through Egypt to the
Gaza Strip had allowed armed groups there to purchase new weapons including
more modern assault rifles and anti-tank weapons systems.

Weapons from Libya were also being transported through southern
<http://www.reuters.com/places/tunisia> Tunisia, southern Algeria and
northern Niger to destinations such as Mali, but some arms were remaining in
those corridor countries for use by local groups.

"These zones also serve as bases and transit points for non-state armed
groups, including terrorist groups and criminal and drug trafficking
networks with links to the wider Sahel region," according to the report.

The experts said they had found that Qatar and the United Arab Emirates had
breached the arms embargo on Libya during the 2011 uprising by providing
weapons and ammunition to the rebels fighting Gaddafi forces. The experts
said Qatar had denied the accusation, while the United Arab Emirates had not
responded.

"Some 18 months after the end of the conflict, some of this materiel remains
under the control of non-state actors within Libya and has been found in
seizures of military materiel being trafficked out of Libya," according to
the report.

"Civilians and brigades remain in control of most of the weapons in the
country, while the lack of an effective security system remains one of the
primary obstacles to securing military materiel and controlling the
borders," it said.

Last month the U.N. Security Council made it easier for Libya to obtain
non-lethal equipment such as bulletproof vests and armored cars but
expressed concern at the spread of weapons from the country to nearby
states.

The council urged the Libyan government to improve its monitoring of arms
and related material that is supplied, sold or transferred to the government
- with approval of the U.N. sanctions committee that oversees the arms
embargo.

Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan told the Security Council last month that
the government had control of its borders with Algeria, Niger, Chad, Sudan
and Egypt. Zeidan said in February he wanted the council to lift the arms
embargo on Libya, but council members said they never received an official
request.

(Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)