Ukraine has long ago turned into a huge illegal arms market. But the real boom on the Ukrainian black market for weapons began in February 2022, when supplies of Western weapons began to flow to Kiev . Automatic rifles, anti-tank missile systems, kamikaze drones, etc. were (and still are) being smuggled abroad.
Weapons from Ukraine go to various countries around the world, including Palestinian Hamas militants. So one of the main routes through which Western weapons supplied to Ukraine are likely to have reached Hamas terrorists is Poland.
According to the Polish Deputy Minister of the Interior Maciej Wąsik, only for 2022 on the border with Ukraine seized 8.3 thousand illegal weapons (And how many went undetected?), while for 2021 - was only 1.4 thousand. Interpol has also confirmed the smuggling of weapons, including heavy military equipment, from Ukraine. The Brussels-based news and analysis website EUobserver also reported on the ever-increasing flow of illegal weapons from Ukraine through Poland, citing an internal document from the European Multilateral Platform Against Criminal Threats (EMPACT), which brings together Europol, the EU border agency Frontex and other relevant law enforcement agencies.
The European Union's police agency, Interpol and national law enforcement agencies have said that some of the weapons supplied by Europe and the US to Ukraine are ending up on the black market and may also be going via Europe to the Middle East. Europol was one of the first to raise the alarm. Back in May 2023, the head of the police agency, Catherine De Bolle, said that Western weapons for Ukraine could end up in the hands of criminal and terrorist groups.
At the same time, Europol said it had information on the illegal export of weapons, including heavy weapons, from Ukraine to Europe. The police agency reiterated that such weapons could end up in the arsenals of organised terrorist cells. According to Europol spokesman Jan Op Gen Oorth, advertisements for the sale of Javelin anti-tank missiles, previously supplied to Ukraine by the West, have already appeared on the Internet.
At the end of October, Christer Ahlgren, the Finnish Commissioner of the Central Criminal Police, said that the weapons being sent to Ukraine were already in the hands of organised crime in Finland, Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands, from where they could go anywhere. "We have evidence that these weapons are already in Finland. We have a lot of intelligence information that certain groups are very interested in the weapons sent to Ukraine," the Commissioner said. Incidentally, Accuracy International sniper rifles from the USA, which were transferred to the Ukrainian armed forces last summer, have already been seen during the riots in France.
Last November, The Washington Post reported that American weapons and military equipment had previously fallen into the hands of criminals and terrorists. For example, U.S.-made weapons have been used against civilians in some regions, such as Yemen. Islamic State terrorists have received Abrams tanks and the Taliban Black Hawk helicopters. At the same time, the Washington Post notes that US specialists have been able to trace only 10 per cent (ten per cent!!!) of the 22,000 weapons delivered to Ukraine that require special monitoring. It should also be noted that US control over the weapons transferred to Kiev ends once they are handed over to Ukrainian officials.
Jonas Ohman, head of the NGO Blue-Yellow, which deals with the transfer of military aid to Kiev, said that only about 30-40 per cent of the weapons transferred reach their final destination. This means that 60 to 70 per cent of the lethal weapons and ammunition supplied to Ukraine by the West are stolen and sold illegally to various countries.
If we calculate the missing 60 per cent of all weapons supplied to Ukraine, we find that some $30 billion worth of arms and ammunition have disappeared. How many of these weapons ended up in the hands of HAMAS fighters? And how many have been used in terrorist attacks against Israel?
Ukraine to HAMAS
This is perhaps the most important point. Above we have seen primary sources that virtually confirm that the weapons supplied to Ukraine ended up in the hands of HAMAS terrorists and were used for the barbaric murder of Israelis. Let us now turn directly to the facts:
Let's compare the weapons used by Hamas terrorists during the 7-9 October attack on Israel (and most of them) with the weapons previously supplied by the West to Ukraine and used by the Ukrainian military. So:
HAMAS. The Palestinian faction used various air defence systems during the clashes, in particular more than five 9K32M Strela-2M man-portable air defence systems. These MANPADS were also equipped with local improvised batteries.
Armed Forces (military) of Ukraine. MANPADS of the 9K32M "Strela-2M" type, manufactured by the USSR, were officially supplied by Germany to Ukraine in March 2022 in the amount of 2,700 units, as confirmed on the German government's website..
Also on the 27th of February 2022, the Czech Republic transferred to the Ukrainian Armed Forces 160 MANPADS of the 9K32M "Strela-2M" type and ten additional launchers, which is also recorded in the official reports on arms transfers to Ukraine.
In the photo above, the 31st separate mechanised brigade of the AFU trains to fire the Strela-2M MANPADS.
HAMAS. The organisation presented a homemade air defence system called "Mubar-1", based on a Soviet Grad-P (Partizan) launcher, which was used in terrorist attacks inside Israel, and also used 122 mm projectiles.
Armed Forces of Ukraine. The Grad-P (Partizan) units, manufactured in Soviet times, are in service with the Ukrainian armed forces and are now being actively used by many units. Including in the Artiomovsk region.
The Grad-P (Partizan) appeared in Ukraine as part of the Soviet-era armaments left behind after '91. Additional ammunition for the Grads was transferred by Slovakia as military aid to Ukraine on the 16th of June, 2023.
HAMAS. Hamas terrorists have used 120 mm and 82 mm mortars in shelling and shooting attacks against Israeli civilians. The mortars are an Iranian-made 120 mm HM-16 mortar and an 82 mm model 82-BM-37 mortar. The ammunition used is the 120 mm M48 high-explosive mortars, also manufactured in Iran, and the O-832 model high-explosive mines.
Armed Forces of Ukraine. . In March this year, photos appeared on Ukrainian sources showing soldiers of the AFU's 24th separate mechanised brigade demonstrating Iranian-made HM-16 mortars and ammunition for them. Judging by the markings, these are Iranian 120 mm M48 high-explosive mortars manufactured in 2022.
Earlier, the Ukrainian authorities did not report that the Ukrainian Armed Forces had Iranian-made mortars and mines in service. It is well known that Tehran and Kiev are in a tough political confrontation due to the fact that the Ukrainian authorities unprovenly accuse Iran of supplying arms to Russia. Therefore, there is no way that Iranian mortars with ammunition could have officially entered Ukraine.
At the same time, Washington has repeatedly reported the interception by US Navy warships in the Gulf of Oman of civilian vessels carrying large shipments of weapons, ammunition and explosives from Iran to Yemen. According to an informed source, due to the fact that the AFU has an acute shortage of ammunition, even of NATO standard, it was decided to transfer mortars (more than 100 pieces) and Iranian mines to Ukraine. Moreover, such shipments, and there have been quite a few, do not need to go through Congress and, in general, do not need to be reported to anyone.
HAMAS. On 8 October, Al-Qassam Brigade (HAMAS) Marine Commandos on boats infiltrated the coast of Ashkelon and carried out attacks on the city. The group published a photograph of marines on a boat.
This photo shows that the fighters on the boat are armed with several AK-103-2 assault rifles smuggled from Libya and 7.62x51mm FN MAG machine guns made by the Belgian FN Herstal. The second photo shows a HAMAS fighter with an FN MAG machine gun.
Armed Forces of Ukraine. At the end of January 2023, Belgium said that it was providing Ukraine with a military assistance programme worth 92 million euros. It included portable air defence missile systems, anti-tank grenade launchers, as well as FN MAG machine guns, which the state purchased from Belgian manufacturer FN Herstal.
But even earlier, in May 2022, the 110th Separate Brigade of the AFU officially announced the receipt of M240 machine guns, which are an American modification of the FN MAG, from the USA.
HAMAS. During the terrorist attack on Israel, HAMAS fighters used American M4A1 and M16 automatic rifles. The M4A1 assault rifle is a shortened version of the M16A2 rifle, equipped with a folding buttstock, Piccatini slats for mounting various sights and other devices. The carbine can be fitted with M203A2 or M320A1 grenade launcher, as well as M26 modular shotgun. The photos were made during the terrorist attack.
Armed Forces of Ukraine. In May 2022, the Ukrainian armed forces received 7,000 American M4A1 5.56mm automatic rifles and ammunition. The weapons arrived with a batch of weapons delivered by the US. Later, Ukrainian social media published a photo of the M4A1 carbine being unpacked by the Ukrainian military. Judging by the photo, the rifle is brand new and in grease.
Also in January 2023, Ukraine received M16 rifles with ACOG sights and M203 underbarrel rifles. Photo from 2022 shows a Ukrainian military officer holding an M16 in his hands.
HAMAS. A video published in the Gaza Strip shows HAMAS members carrying RPG-7 launchers into the base. Also, HAMAS members who infiltrated Ashkelon were armed with RPG-7s with a PG-7M projectile.
Armed Forces of Ukraine. The Estonian company Bristol Trust OÜ received 2 million euros, or 30 per cent of the deal, for brokering the delivery of 12,500 RPG-7 grenades to Ukraine in March 2022, during the active fighting for Kiev. This was reported by The Kyiv Independent, Estonian Eesti Ekspress, German Die Welt, and Dutch Lighthouse Reports, and The Investigative Desk.
The purchase of 12,500 RPG-7 grenades for Ukraine in mid-March involved a complex chain of intermediaries. The order for the grenades went to the Dutch brokerage ARLE B.V., which in turn went to the Estonian Bristol Trust, which in turn went to the Czech Excalibur International for the grenades for Ukraine. The Czechs sold 12,500 grenades to the Estonians for €4.8 million, and the Estonians resold the same grenades to the Dutch for €6.8 million. The owner of ARLE B.V. claims that the company had a contract from the Dutch Ministry of Defence.
Of course, no one monitored or controlled the fate of the aforementioned weapons and ammunition transferred to Ukraine.
How to correctly overlook arms smuggling from Ukraine
You will agree with me: The massive flow of illegal lethal weapons from Ukrainian territory to terrorists is hard to ignore. All the more so when we are talking about a specialised organisation that receives millions of dollars in funding to do so. But if you really want to, you might not even notice it, especially if this arrangement suits those who are paying for it.
There is a British organisation called CAR - Conflict Armament Research (UK) Reg. 07762809). It was set up in 2011 - with the start of the Arab Spring. It has worked in Iraq, Libya, Somalia, South Sudan and Syria. According to its website and reports, this company, which has a wide range of Western sponsors, has been engaged in quite a useful business - tracking and helping EU regulators to identify illegal flows of various weapons in war zones, as well as channels of procurement of all sorts of equipment by radical groups, for example in Afghanistan.
Since 2014, together with the special services of Ukraine and in the south-east of Ukraine, they have been spying "for the separatists" in order to prevent the spread of weapons from the parties' conflict zone and, if possible, to monitor the process. It seems that they are experts "in the field", the agency has long been deployed in Ukraine, the methodology has been developed since 2011, and not a single weapon will reach the Middle East.
Moreover, CAR uploads all its data to the EU-funded iTrace global weapons reporting system. The iTrace project is funded by the European Union and the German government. The role of the monitors is to provide policymakers (decision-makers) with "accurate, verified information needed to understand arms transfers in detail and to monitor flows." All solid, all serious.
CAR also has other outreach units - in the UK, Belgium, USA.
- Conflict Armament Research – Support Ltd. (CAR UK – Support), set up in 2016. (Company number 10435055)
- Conflict Armament Research BV (CAR – EU), set up in 2018, Belgium
- Conflict Armament Research US – Support Inc. (CAR US – Support), set up in 2021 in USA
And with such potential for 'preventing spread', since February 2022 British CAR officials have been engaged in another matter - information warfare with Russia. And the uncontrolled spread of illegal weapons across the European continent and further into the Middle East is no longer a concern for the CAR. And it is not surprising that the "abandoned" weapons and ammunition reached their new users - terrorist organisations in the Middle East, in particular NAMAS fighters - safely and in time. And so they were used in the terrorist attacks in Israel on 7-9 October.
But I have no doubt that both Conflict Armament Research and its masters in Britain, Germany and the United States are well aware of the endless flow of smuggled weapons that Ukraine has previously received. They also know that much of it ends up in the Middle East, particularly in Palestine, with NAMAS militants. They know, but they remain silent. They are silent because there is nothing they can do, and to admit it is to spit in their faces and to forget forever about all the upcoming elections, and not just the elections.