Blood at the Crossroads: Making the case for a global Arms Trade Treaty
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are more than 30 years old. They’re fairly indestructible.”209 Weapons are refurbished and reissued to Iraqi forces.210 There have also been very serious concerns over the failure to effectively manage and control the distribution of small arms, light weapons and associated munitions within Iraq and to ensure that they are used by well-trained, accountable Iraqi security services according to recognized international standards. In a damning US Government Accountability Office Report211 published in July 2007,212 it was revealed that at least 190,000 weapons were “unaccounted for” in Iraq due to discrepancies between what was authorized for export under US contracts and what was actually noted in the Multinational Security Transition CommandIraq (MNSTC-I) property books for the period June 2004 to July 2007. The official report concluded that it was impossible to ensure that these 190,000 weapons had been delivered to their intended recipients in the Iraqi security forces. The report found serious errors in accountability procedures, including insufficient staffing, inadequate distribution networks, and inadequate record keeping technology and data collection.213 Crucially, an October 2006 report from the Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstructions (SIGIR)214 revealed that only 2.7% of some 370,000 infantry weapons supplied to the Iraqi security forces under US Government contracts had details of the serial numbers of these weapons logged in US Department of Defense inventories.215 The report also found that only two contracts covering the supply of 10,000 9mm pistols out of a total of 19 contracts contained any stipulation that the contractors should record serial numbers and be provided to the relevant authorities when the weapons were supplied.216 This “Insurgent arms become allied assets”, Multi-National Force Iraq, 5 October 2006. “Insurgent arms become allied assets”, Multi-National Force Iraq, 5 October 2006; see also the AK-47 refurbishment program (Contract W91GY0-07-C-0035), Contracts from the US Department of Defense, N° 52407, 3 May 2007. 211 “The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) is an independent, nonpartisan agency that works for Congress. Often called the "congressional watchdog," GAO investigates how the federal government spends taxpayer dollars. GAO’s work is done at the request of congressional committees or subcommittees or is mandated by public laws or committee reports. GAO also undertake research under the authority of the Comptroller General.” (http://www.gao.gov/about/index.html). 212 GAO Report to Congressional Committees, “Stabilizing Iraq, DOD Cannot Ensure That U.S.-Funded Equipment Has Reached Iraqi Security Forces,” July 2007, available at http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d07711.pdf 213 Ibid 214 “The Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq econstruction (SIGIR) is the successor to the Coalition Provisional Authority Office of Inspector General (CPA-IG). SIGIR was created in October 2004 by a congressional amendment to Public Law 108-106, triggered by the June 28, 2004, dissolution of the CPA. The amendment allows SIGIR to continue the oversight that CPA-IG had established for Iraq reconstruction programs and operations. Specifically, SIGIR is mandated with the oversight responsibility of the use, and potential misuse, of the Iraq Relief and Reconstruction Fund (IRRF) and all obligations, expenditures, and revenues associated with reconstruction and rehabilitation activities in Iraq. SIGIR reports administratively to the Secretaries of State and Defense. In addition, SIGIR provides quarterly and semi-annual reports directly to the U.S. Congress.” (http://www.sigir.mil). 215 “ Iraqi Security Forces: Weapons provided by the US Department of Defense using the Iraq relief and reconstruction fund”, SIGIR – 06-033, October 28, 2006, available online at http://www.sigir.mil/reports/pdf/audits/06-033.pdf 216 Ibid 209 210
Amnesty International
AI Index: ACT 30/011/2008