Egypt Seizes US-Made Missiles Heading to Gaza Strip

Likely Smuggled From Libya, Officials Believe

Egyptian officials say they have seized six US-made missiles in the Sinai Peninsula, and that they were in the cache of weapons smugglers likely planning to take them into the Gaza Strip.

The Egyptians say they believe the weapons came into the country by way of Libya, which is of course awash in weapons with the NATO installation of the Libyan National Council and the looting of Gadhafi regime warehouses.

The question of how US weapons might’ve come to Libya is a good one though, as the Obama Administration has not admitted to any such transfers, and still bans the sale of weapons to Libya over proliferation concerns.

Human Rights Watch officials speculated that Egypt might’ve made a mistake and that they “probably” had weapons from either France or Italy, both of which have been eager to sell armament to the new Libyan government.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.