Four arrested for arms smuggling
The Royal Oman Police
(ROP) caught four people on the southern border of Dhofar who were attempting
to smuggle firearms across the border. The four smugglers were caught
red-handed and were also found with cash. It is believed that this cash is from
illegal arms trading. Along with the four suspects, 12 people were arrested in
the Batinah region for forging visas. The accused were all handed over to
Public Prosecution.
The nature of the illegal
activity begs questions. Why are weapons being illegally smuggled over the
border into Oman? Why are visas being forged to bring people into the country?
It could be an indicator of more civil unrest in the future. It could also hint
at potential conflict within the borders of Oman. It is important to be aware
of signs that could potentially predict upcoming conflict.
It is possible that
conflict could occur from the inside. When rebel groups need arms or other
resources, they often turn to external sources to provide them with such
things. When done correctly, this results in an armed rebel group. Idean Salehyan,
Kristian Skrede and David E. Cunningham discussed the point of rebel groups
seeking aid from external sources. It is no secret that disgruntled groups will
look for support elsewhere if their government proves to be deaf to their calls
for reform. Because it is currently not clear who is involved in this specific
activity, it would be well worth it to trace the roots of those involved.
However, the Sultan
should not be naïve. Illicit activities (specifically arms) are often symptoms
of an unsatisfied group. Oman should closely monitor its borders. The fact that
they caught 16 suspects is a good start. However, it is probably also a good
sign that there are other smugglers out there who have not been caught. There
should be a closer eye kept on illegal activity, especially from beyond Oman’s
borders.
I really like the idea of using arms sales to predict the potential/probability for conflict onset in different countries, albeit I think it would be difficult to actually measure. Also, in your discussion of arms sales to Oman, I feel some crucial information is lacking in relation to the United State's role in promoting such trade. According the CRS report in 2012, some $71.5 billion was spent on arms trades involving developing nations in 2012 alone, doubling since 2010. Furthermore, the U.S. ranks first in the world in such deals and comprises 75% of all "arms transfer agreements" to developing nations. Yet, there seems to be little serious discussion about such continued production and outflow of arms from America to countries in turmoil around the world.
ReplyDeleteSource:http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/weapons/R42678.pdf
I think it would be difficult to connect potential for unrest to arms dealing since all countries participate in it in some way whether illegal or not. Forging of Visas as well is pretty popular around the world due to a high variety of reasons. These arms dealers could be contributing to a black market effort to transport arms to another country in the area and just be a stopping place for the smugglers. I agree with the above commenter that the US legally plays a big role in arms trading which fuels our own economy too. Tracing arms dealing back to the source could prove very difficult.
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