Nigeria seizes illegal arms shipment amid controversy with Iran
Nigeria has seized another illegal arms shipment in Lagos, including pistols and military vehicles. It is unclear where the weapons come from but the incident occurs one month after Nigerian security agents seized an illegal shipment from Iran.
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A navy spokesperson said Wednesday that the items, which included ammunition, bulletproof jackets, and military boots, were discovered inside a vehicle.
A number of suspects have been arrested.
It is unclear where the weapons came from.
Last month, Nigerian security agents intercepted an illegal arms shipment from Iran, disguised as building materials. Iran says a private company was in charge of the shipment and it was on its way to a west African country, later named as the Gambia.
In the wake of that incident, the Gambia severed all ties with Iran on Tuesday and ordered all Iranian representatives to leave the country within 48 hours.
it was unclear who the arms were destined for, David Gutelius, senior advisor at the UN foundation, told RFI.
“Honestly, it's quite unclear at this point, though I tend not to think the shipment was bound for a particular political group. It's more likely that the weapons were destined for the black market,” Gutelius says.
Four sets of UN sanctions have been slapped onto Iran over its disputed nuclear programme including a ban on arms sales.
A Iranian senior MP, Alaeddin Borujerdi, has accused Gambia of bowing to pressure from the United States and accused it of seeking to damage Iran's relations with African countries.
Both ostracised internationally, with Gambia accused of rights abuses, the two nations have repeatedly declared their support for each other.
Iran has been involved in many projects in the Gambia including a multimillion dollar agriculture and rural development project.
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