The North Africa Journal: Threat and security assessment and tracking company MEA Risk LLC said the Algerian authorities continue to tally the weapons they have confiscated from the general public. Although illegal, many of what is confiscated are hunting rifles and related ammunition. Some of the confiscations, however, are more serious as they constitute a security threat based on Algeria’s definition of what constitute a threat. This was this case on 19 January, when the army in Jijel seized a MAT-49 automatic rifle, related ammunition and live bullets. In Tebessa, 10,000 shotgun cartridges were seized by the authorities, and two suspects were apprehended. Alarmingly, five homemade bombs were discovered during a sweeping operation in Tizi Ouzou on 16 January. These discoveries have been made possible through sweeping operations, leading to the discovery of hideouts and caches. In Beni Foudala, province of Batna, three insurgent hideouts were discovered on 17 January. Three days later, the army discovered three other insurgent hideouts in Oum el-Bouaghi, in the northeast. In Blida, a homemade bomb was found during a similar operation.
MEA Rik Meanwhile notes that the military’s campaign in southern Algeria is fetching far more lethal war-grade weapons than in the north. The proximity of war-torn Mali and destabilized southern Libya and northern Niger have been important reasons for Algeria’s permanent campaign to rid the country of illegal weapons. Many of the weapons found in places near the border with Mali have a lot more to do with the conflict in Mali, instead of Algeria proper. Regardless, the Algerian military appears keen on neutralizing insurgents who may be tempted to use the Algerian territory in fueling the conflict in the Sahel.
This week in Adrar, a Kalashnikov machine gun and five rounds of ammunition were found by the army during a sweeping operation on 17 January. In Tamanrasset, a similar discovery was made on 20 January, and on the following day, the army discovered in the same region a weapons cache containing a BM-21 122mm missile, six 82mm mortar shells, six 82mm rockets, 25 grenades and 336 live bullets. These discoveries came when two alleged insurgents were killed in Tamanrasset. Identified as B.Slimane and K.Tadji, the militants were reported to be part of Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM). They were carrying Kalashnikov machine guns, live bullets and four-by-four vehicles.
