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2011-03-01 | AFP: Belarus sends arms to LibyaAIRCRAFT have been seen flying between Belarus and Libya, raising concerns that Ales Minsk is sending arms to Gaddafi. "An Ilyushin Il-76 (plane) flew to Libya on February 15 from Baranovichi, a huge former Soviet weapon storage (area) now controlled by the Belarus government," said Hugh Griffiths of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), quoting aviation authority sources.Link to full story: Belarus sends arms to Libya
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2011-03-01 | SVT: Vitryska vapen i LibyenLink to full story: Vitryska vapen i Libyen
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A leading arms trade watchdog group suspects that Libya received a shipment of military equipment from Belarus, as forces loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi began a bloody crackdown on anti-government protesters.
Link to full story: Arms Watchdog Suspects Belarus-Libya Transports -
A leading arms trade watchdog suspects Libya received a shipment of military equipment from Belarus shortly before the UN imposed an arms embargo on the country.Link to full story: Libya received military shipment from Belarus, claims EU arms watchdog
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STOCKHOLM -- An arms trade watchdog says it suspects Libya received a shipment of military equipment from Belarus as Moammar Gadhafi's regime started a bloody crackdown on anti-government protesters.
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The United Nations secretary-general said a suspected shipment of helicopter gunships from Belarus to Ivory Coast would be a "serious violation" of an international arms embargo imposed on the West African nation, whose longtime ruler is clinging to power despite losing a presidential election. /.../ Weapons from Belarus "have a track record of ending up in places subject to U.N. arms embargoes," said Hugh Griffiths, an expert on illicit arms trafficking at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
Link to full story: U.N. Fears Belarus Broke Ivory Coast Embargo -
Freiwillig seinen Posten räumen? Über diesen Vorschlag kann Libyens Despot Gaddafi im Interview nur kichern. Die Uno könne aber gern zu einem Kontrollbesuch ins Land kommen. Das Pentagon schickt unterdessen weitere Einheiten in die Region. Die Ereignisse des Tages im Minutenprotokoll. /.../ +++ Gaddafi könnte Waffen aus Weißrussland gekauft haben +++ [22.36 Uhr] Libyen hat zu Beginn der Unruhen nach Angaben des Stockholmer Instituts für Friedensforschung (Sipri) möglicherweise Rüstungsgüter aus Weißrussland erhalten. Mitte Februar sei auf dem libyschen Flughafen Sebha eine von einem weißrussischen Militärstützpunkt kommende Transportmaschine eingetroffen, teilte Sipri mit. Sebha sei für das Militär im Süden Libyens wichtig. Die Region werde von einem loyal zu Machthaber Gaddafi stehenden Stamm kontrolliert. Außerdem flog angeblich vergangene Woche zwei Mal eine Maschine der Regierung in Tripolis nach Weißrussland.Link to full story: Der Spiegel: Gaddafi lacht über Rücktritt, USA ziehen Truppen zusammen
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Des forces américaines ont été déployées autour de la Libye où le colonel Kadhafi ne cède pas d’un pouce face à l’opposition, affirmant que son peuple l’adore et envoyant la force aérienne bombarder des dépôts de munitions dans des zones sous le contrôle de la rébellion. FIN DE NOTRE DIRECT /.../ 16h37 – Trafic d’armes – Des vols soupçonnés d‘être liés à un trafic d’armes du Bélarus vers la Libye ont été repérés ces derniers jours, déclare à l’AFP un responsable d’un programme de surveillance du trafic d’armes de l’Institut international de recherche pour la paix de Stockholm (Sipri). “Le 15 février, un Iliouchine IL-76 a décollé de Baranovitchi, qui abrite un vaste dépôt d’armes au Bélarus, à destination de la Libye”, indique Hugh Griffiths.Link to full story: EN DIRECT: en Libye, l’opposition vise Tripoli
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Article on ethical procurement of air cargo services by EthicalCargo Training Manager, Jon Fowler, in the latest edition of Humanitarian Exchange (published February 2011 - pages 29-31).
Link to full story: Humanitarian Exchange (#49) - article only -
2011-02-10 |Arms traffickers often skirt detection by operating in countries that have weak oversight and laws regulating weapons transactions. "These guys have been under the radar for years in the Balkans, Eastern Europe and other places that are major sources of guns that destabilize nations and prop up dictators," said Hugh Griffiths, an arms trafficking expert with the Stockholm International Peace Institute. "But to go after them legally, you need strong laws and enforcement, and the U.S. remains the best place to find that."Link to full story:
Viktor Bout extradition
The world's most infamous arms dealer, Viktor Bout, could be extradited to the United States. Yet around the globe, most dealers operate with impunity because they supply the demand for a hot commodity: small arms.
He's been called "the lord of war" and "the merchant of death." He stands accused of selling weapons to the world's most murderous regimes from Afghanistan's Taliban to Liberia's Charles Taylor, who is now on trial in the Hague for crimes against humanity.
Idag beslutade en thailändsk domstol att den utpekade ryske vapenhandlaren Viktor Bout kan lämnas ut till USA. Dagens beslut går emot ett tidigare utslag i en lägre instans. Bout har anklagats för att ha trotsat FN:s vapenembargon ett otal gånger, inte minst i krigen i Västafrika. Men det som blev hans fall var en amerikansk underrättelseoperation för två år sen där amerikanska agenter utgav sig för att tillhöra den colombianska FARC-gerillan och erbjöds köpa vapen. Intervju med Hugh Griffiths på fredsforskningsinstitutet SIPRI, samtal med Tomas Jordan, korrespondent.
Bangkok Airport seizure
In the face of a strengthened sanctions regime, North Korea uses a footloose transnational system to continue its arms exports, Des Carney writes for ISN Security Watch.
It was no ordinary smuggling bust. On Dec. 11, an old Russian plane landed in Thailand to refuel after taking off hours earlier from Pyongyang, North Korea. In its hull, police found 35 tons of explosives, rocket-propelled grenades and components for surface-to-air missiles, all being transported from North Korea in breach of U.N. sanctions.
THAÏLANDE Selon Bangkok, les 35 tonnes d'armement nord-coréen saisies étaient destinées à l`Iran.
Det plan från Nordkorea som upptäcktes med stora mängder vapen och sprängmedel ombord när det mellanlandade i Thailand i måndags visar sig nu ha använts av FN under humanitära insatser i Afrika 2003.
Smuggelplanet som fastnat i Thailand med en illegal nordkoreansk vapenlast hyrdes länge av FN för humanitära transporter, avslöjar fredsforskare för TT.
En vapentransport som stoppades i Thailand i helgen har fått världen att rikta blickarna mot Nordkorea. USA försöker nu närma sig landet igen ett halvår efter att FN utökade sanktionerna. Häromdagen överlämnades ett brev från Barack Obama till Kim Jong-Il.
The weapons laden aircraft seized in Bangkok en route from North Korea at the weekend has been linked to two renowned East European arms traffickers by a respected Swedish think-tank in the latest twist in the mysterious saga.
Samedi, les autorités thaïlandaises ont saisi à bord d'un avion-cargo IL-76 une très importante cargaison d'armes en provenance de Corée du Nord. Hugh Griffiths, chercheur chargé de l'étude des transferts illicites d'armements au SIPRI (Stockholm International Peace Research Institute), revient sur cette opération.
EthicalCargo launch
A new web portal which allows peacekeepers and aid workers to check their contracting firms’ background has been launched by a Swedish think-tank.
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) has launched a new information system to prevent arms and drug traffickers from accessing significant humanitarian aid and peacekeeping funds.
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) rolled out a new informational website on Tuesday that aims to "prevent arms and drug traffickers from accessing significant humanitarian aid and peacekeeping funds," reports. An earlier SIPRI report found that "more than 90 percent of the air cargo carriers identified in arms trafficking-related reports had also been used for humanitarian aid and peace-keeping operations between 2004 and 2009." According to the news service, "[t]he portal, funded by Sweden's governmental aid agency SIDA and the country's foreign ministry, includes a database, model codes of conduct and best practices for negotiations with transport suppliers" (4/19).
LONDON (AlertNet) - As if getting relief supplies to conflict zones isn't hard enough, there's always a risk the air charter company you've hired is also involved in a spot of weapons smuggling - just ask any seasoned logistics officer.
Ett nytt svenskt initiativ ska förhindra att vapen och knark blandas med bistånd och fredsbevarande insatser. Idag lanserar Sipri, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, informationsportalen EthicalCargo.org.
Det är mycket vanligt att flygbolag som varit engagerade i illegal vapen- och droghandel också arbetat med transporter för bistånds- och fredsbevarande insatser. Det visar en rapport från fredforskningsinstitutet SIPRI.
En ny databas som öppnar i dag ska hindra att hjälporganisationer och vapensmugglare använder sig av samma flygfraktbolag.
Databasen för etisk frakt har tagits fram av fredsforskningsinstitutet Sipri, med stöd av Sida och regeringen, skriver TT. Den ska till exempel informera om bolag som smugglar vapen och narkotika.
SR Ekot P1 Klip 2010-04-20
På svenskt initiativ startar nu en databas som ska förhindra att hjälporganisationer och vapensmugglare anlitar samma flygfraktbolag, något som är mycket vanligt.
SIPRI Policy Paper reaction
Las mismas empresas aéreas que transportan la ayuda humanitaria a regiones africanas en conflicto o con poblaciones desplazadas, vuelan al día siguiente llevando armas o drogas a esas mismas zonas. Esta tremenda contradicción esconde una práctica escandalosa y preocupante, tolerada por los países que deberían bregar por el cuidado de la población civil.
Um novo estudo indica que as mesmas companhias que transportam armas para as zonas de conflito em África, muitas vezes são contratadas pelas agências internacionais para o transporte dos abastecimentos humanitários e operações de manutenção de paz nas mesmas áreas.
Use in peacekeeping missions of air carriers that have supplied arms and drugs is 'dirty secret of the humanitarian aid world'.
Some air transport firms used to fly aid to African conflict zones are also involved in arms shipments and drug trafficking, according to a study.
The same cargo airlines used to bring food and other aid supplies to Africa are also being used in arms smuggling, according to a new report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
Kansainvälisten järjestöjen avustuskuljetuksissa rahdataan konfliktialueille myös aseita. Ruotsissa toimivan rauhantutkimuslaitoksen selvityksestä ilmenee, että jopa 90 prosenttia asekuljetuksia tekevistä yrityksistä kuljettaa myös muun muassa YK:n alaisten avustusjärjestöjen rahteja.
Många flygbolag som används till att leverera humanitär hjälp i olika konflikter utnyttjas också för vapensmuggling och ibland till och med till samma krigsområde. Det visar en studie från fredsforskningsinstitutet Sipri.
UNITED NATIONS, May 12, 2009 (IPS) - The military conflicts raging across Africa, Asia and Latin America have been significantly influenced by the heavy flow of illicit small arms, cocaine and rich minerals.
Am 31. Juli 2006 wurde eine Iljuschin-76-Maschine der Fluggesellschaft Badr Airlines auf dem Al-Fasher-Flughafen im Darfur fotografiert, als aus ihrem Bug Toyota-Pick-ups entladen wurden, auf deren Ladeflächen Maschinengewehre installiert waren: Nachschub für die Rebellen in der vom Bürgerkrieg gemarterten sudanesischen Region. Das stand in krassem Widerstreit mit dem Waffenembargo, das die Vereinten Nationen über die Konfliktzone verhängt haben.
Samma flygbolag som ena dagen flyger vapen eller knark till och från konflikthärdar i främst Afrika kan nästa dag flyga humanitär hjälp på uppdrag av FN, EU, Nato eller internationella hjälporganisationer.
