CAIRO - Smuggled arms have been flowing into Egypt amid the turbulence following Mubarak's toppling. Although the security situation has significantly improved in recent months, there is no let-up yet in the flow of the illicit weaponry. This should be reason for worry. Last week, Interior Minister Mohamed Ibrahim disclosed that his forces had seized large quantities of weapons smuggled into Egypt. The cache included rockets and automatic machine guns illegally procured from neighbouring Libya. According to a breakdown given by the Minister, the seized weapons included 138 Grad rockets, 28 automatic machine guns and some 7,000 rounds of ammunition. He said the weapons were seized on a highway in western Egypt after they had been smuggled into the country from the Libyan city of Sirte, the hometown of the now-slain leader Muammar Gaddafi. The arms were either bound for Sinai or the Gaza Strip bordering Egypt, according to the Minister. Arms are rampant in Libya, where the interim rulers are finding it difficult to control armed-to-the-teeth militias, who were instrumental in fighting and toppling the Gaddafi regime. Because of this, Egypt is feeling the pinch. Following the mysterious collapse of the police system in the final days of Mubarak's rule, the arms trade has begun to thrive in Egypt. Those who cannot afford expensive smuggled firearms have been buying the stun guns hawked by unlicensed vendors on the nation's pavements. This boom is due to the feeling of insecurity that has gripped most Egyptians. The police previously confiscated large amounts of illicit weapons during raids, including pitched gunbattles with the smugglers. The weaponry sometimes included anti-aircraft rockets and other sophisticated arms. Nonetheless, the latest cache has been described by Ibrahim as the biggest bust in his Ministry's history. A day before the minister reported the haul, local media quoted senior police officials as disclosing that half a tonne of drugs was seized near the area of el-Alamein on Egypt's northwest coast. The drugs also came from Libya. The dangerous effects of these illicit goods on Egypt, at this precarious, fragile time, need not be over-emphasised. With the police yet to recover from the chaos of the past 17 months, there are fears that a larger, undetected cache of illicit weapons has already found its way into Egypt. What can be done? For the time being, the Egyptian and Libyan authorities, while preoccupied with rebuilding their respective countries, have to join forces to stem this flow. At the same time, penalties for dealing in smuggled weapons should be toughened.
