ICCT’s Key Publications on Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) as a Source of Finance for Terrorism

How does the flow of illicit arms fuel terrorism? Our Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) project with Project CRAAFT examines the link between SALW and terrorist financing globally. Below are our key findings.

On Wednesday April 7, ICCT is hosting a Live Briefing on Small Arms Light Weapons. See this page for more information on the event.

You can sign up for our upcoming event ‘Cashing in on Guns’ here.

1️⃣ What is the history behind terrorists’ use of small arms and light weapons? This report by Colin Clarke delves into examples that are both historical (FARC and the Tamil Tigers) and contemporary (ISIS and AQ).

2️⃣ Terrorist financing has been an area for concern in the Middle East and North Africa when ISIS became “the richest and most powerful terrorist group in contemporary history”. What enabled the regional proliferation of SALW?

3️⃣ How have previous conflicts such as the Vietnam and Afghan War influenced the flow of arms in South Asia and Southeast Asia? And what is their link to terrorist financing? Read it in this situation report.

4️⃣ How do terrorist groups operating in West Africa profit from arms trafficking? And what role did the Libyan conflict play in this? The situation report on West Africa and the Horn of Africa gives a comprehensive overview. 

5️⃣ What are the key global patterns in the acquisition, trafficking and use of small arms and light weapons as a source of finance by terrorist organisations? This report translates regional trends to a global overview.

6️⃣ Our final report in this series presents the main findings on the use of arms as a source of terrorist financing, and presents the likely consequences for the #EU if we fail to adopt policies to tackle this threat.