The Algerian judiciary announced on Wednesday that it has thwarted an attempt to smuggle weapons into the country, implicating a terrorist group in the case without naming it. During a press conference, Sid Ali Bourouina, the Deputy Public Prosecutor at the Sidi M’hamed Court in Algiers, revealed that 21 suspects have been arrested and detained on charges of “participating in terrorist activities,” while 12 others remain at large.
Bourouina explained that the case involves the seizure of weapons and ammunition at the port of Bejaia, in eastern Algeria, which were being smuggled into the country by a member of a terrorist group. On August 4, during the routine inspection of passengers arriving on a foreign ship, the main suspect, who was accompanied by his wife, was subjected to a customs check. A large cache of weapons and ammunition was found hidden in his vehicle.
The seized weapons include 11 firearms with a 16mm caliber, seven automatic pistols of various types and calibers, and three firearms with a 12mm caliber, totaling 21 weapons. The ammunition included 2,000 live rounds of various calibers, along with other weapon accessories, military-style clothing, bladed weapons, and cartridge magazines.
Bourouina confirmed that the initial investigations indicated that this large cache of smuggled weapons and ammunition was purchased from a trafficker operating abroad, in coordination with a terrorist group active outside the country.
