NCJ Number
182377
Date Published
1999
Length
58 pages
Annotation
Recognizing that arms caches in Mozambique have been a main source of arms being smuggled into South Africa, those two countries established joint operations (known as "Operation Rachel") to find and destroy weapons within Mozambique left over from the civil war; this booklet traces the history, characteristics, and effectiveness of Operation Rachel, which was begun in 1995.
Abstract
Operation Rachel has been intelligence-driven. Both the Mozambican and the South African police forces gather information on cache locations. A team of Mozambican and South African police destroy the weapons on site. South African pays the bulk of the costs of the operations and provides expertise on weapons and explosives disposal and destruction. Private companies have also become involved, giving incentives to informers who provide information on the location of arms caches. By September 1998, three major operations had been conducted; they destroyed more than 300 tons of firearms and approximately 4 million rounds of ammunition. As a result of these successes, a fourth operation was undertaken in October 1998. This operation went into the central Sofala Province. More than 30 bomb, explosive, and firearm disposal experts of the South Africa Police Service and 12 Mozambican experts were involved in the operation which destroyed more than 100 tons of illegal weapons. If these operations continue to be successful, it is anticipated that most caches in Mozambique will be destroyed, and along with it, one of the sources of illegal weapons. Reasons for the program's success are outlined. 5 tables and 74 notes