The Sudanese Rapid Support Forces (SRSF) announced that they had thwarted an attempt to smuggle a quantity of ammunition on the border with Libya that was on its way into Sudan.
Two members of an arms and ammunition trade gang operating on the border between the two countries were arrested, according to an official statement issued by the SRSF.
The Sudanese Lieutenant-Colonel, Othman Abkar, said that as soon as information arrived on the activity of smuggled gangs in the Saif Al-Barli area on the border triangle, a patrol moved to survey the area.
He added that the gang was chased 10 kilometers from the area. He added that 3,638 rounds of the Grenov machine gun were seized, and 357 rounds of Dushka packed in sacks.
In September, the SRSF seized a shipment of weapons from Libya, and arrested around four smugglers, including two Libyans.
“Our forces deployed on the border strip between Sudan, Egypt, and Libya, managed to seize a shipment of weapons, ammunition, and explosives coming from Libya,” the SRSF said in a statement.
The SRSF Commander, Lieutenant-Colonel Ali Ahmed Mahmoud Awajeh, said the SRSF units were dispatched to the Saif Al-Barli area on the border triangle after receiving intelligence information about the presence of arms-trading gangs in the area.
The SRSF patrols clashed with the smuggling gang three kilometers from Saif Al-Barli area and chased them.
“After the clashes, the forces confiscated two GMC cars carrying 36 Kalashnikov rifles and a box of Kornet grenades, Dushka cannon, RPG-7 launchers, and a large number of various kinds,” the statement revealed.
Notably, the transational government in Sudan closed the country’s borders with Libya many times, citing security and economic risks. It repeatedly complained of arms smuggling across its borders.
Last April, the Sudanese Security and Defence Council, the highest authority in the country, decided to monitor the borders to prevent the flow and spread of weapons, in the wake of violence that broke out in Sudan on April 3rd and lasted for more than a week.
However, the new Governor of the western Darfur region, Mini Arko Minawi, in August decided to re-open the borders for trade with Libya and other neighboring countries.