Political instability in Libya is one of the major drivers of weapons trafficking in northern Nigeria, reports the United States Africa Command. In its quarterly magazine called the Africa Defense Forum, AFRICOM published last Tuesday an article examining the sources of arms proliferation in the Sahel region. Instability in Libya was cited as one of the main reasons behind arms proliferation in northern Nigeria, according to Idris Mohammed, chief executive officer of the Sulhu Development Initiative, a nongovernmental humanitarian organization. Mohammed, who is from northwest Nigeria, noted that several studies have shown that many of the weapons circulating today can be traced back to former Libyan ruler Moammar Gadhafi’s vast stockpile. Under the ECOWAS Convention, member states agree to control, regulate and prohibit the transfer, manufacture, and possession of small arms and light weapons.

Source: Libya Today November 12, 2023 12:17 UTC