Interpol seizes fifty weapons, explosives and drugs in the Sahel

An operation by Interpol and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime at several border points in West Africa and the Sahel led to the seizure of fifty weapons, 40,000 sticks of dynamite and nearly 1,500 kilos of drugs from networks used to supply terrorists.

This operation, KAFO II, took place between 30 November and 6 December at several smuggling hotspots in Burkina Faso, the Ivory Coast, Mali and Niger, where over 12,000 people were searched.

The intervention resulted in an unspecified number of arrests on Monday by the organisation, which did detail the seizure of 50 firearms, 40,593 sticks of dynamite, 28 detonating cords, 6,162 rounds of ammunition, 1,473 kilos of cannabis and khat (a plant used as a hallucinogen), 2,263 boxes of smuggled drugs and 60,000 litres of undeclared fuel.

"Firearms trafficking is a lucrative business that fuels and finances other types of serious crime," said Interpol Secretary General Jürgen Stock.

The operation mobilised 260 officers from law enforcement and other national small arms control commissions, as well as specialised drug trafficking customs units and prosecutors' offices in the four countries involved.

One of the objectives of the mission was to stem the flow of illicit goods used in the region to finance criminal and terrorist activities, and it also served to observe new trends in terrorism.

It is believed that the large quantities of petrol requisitioned in Niger and Mali originated in Nigeria and were used to finance and supply al-Qaeda and its allies.

The dynamite seized was used for the illegal extraction of gold, another source of financing for terrorists.

In addition, Interpol also reported the discovery of large quantities of gloves, gels and hand disinfectant drugs, the smuggling of which is flourishing in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.