An operation against arms trafficking networks that took place in Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso and Côte d’Ivoire has led to the seizure of tens of thousands of explosives, but also a large amount of contraband fuel, Interpol and the United Nations announced on Monday.
The 260 men and women of the operation named KAFO were deployed from 30 November to 6 December in the airports, ports and land borders of four West African countries, Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso and Côte d’Ivoire. The balance sheet of the seizure shows more than 40,000 sticks of dynamite and detonators intended for clandestine mining activities, a new financing channel for terrorist organizations, according to Interpol.
Investigators also got their hands on firearms and thousands of rounds of ammunition, as well as 60,000 liters of smuggled fuel in Mali and Niger. This fuel from Nigeria is suspected of supplying Al Qaeda networks.
For this is indeed the primary objective of KAFO, which means “acting together” in Dioula and Bambara: fighting terrorism. It is within this framework that investigators have targeted arms traffickers suspected of participating in the financing of terrorist organizations. All these seizures have led to the opening of several investigations in order to prosecute those arrested during the operation, but also to trace the supply chains.