Africa News of Wednesday, 11 March 2020

Source: bbc.com

Ethiopia seizes illegal weapons worth $13m

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Intelligence officials have told state-owned Ethiopian TV that a "container full of illegal firearms" that entered the country through the port of Djibouti has been seized.

Officials are quoted as saying they believe the weapons came from Turkey and were smuggled into Ethiopia by international arms-trafficking groups.

They say the haul contained more than 18,000 pistols and estimate it was worth more than $13m (£10m).

Some 24 suspects have been arrested, according to the Ethiopian National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS). It says two of them were Sudanese nationals.

Overall, the NISS say "people from seven foreign countries are suspected of being involved".