Inextricably tangled: terror, drugs, small arms

Over the last couple of decades, those who use terror to further their ends, support that enterprise through the trafficking of arms, mutual training in and trading of techniqes and tools and the trafficking of drugs. As we seek to understand what has happened, and to follow what is unfolding, it is vital that we also comprehend these linkages. What does it mean therefore to wage a 'war on terrorism', when you understand that to attack terrorism is also to take on the rest of this bottomless pit of worms? What are the consequences for which we should brace ourselves?

The United Nations Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention

The Challenge of Small Arms and Light Weapons, by Keith Krause, 3rd International Security Forum and 1st Conference of the Consortium of Defense Academies and Security Studies Institutes, "Networking the Security Community in the Information Age" 19 – 21 October 1998, Kongresshaus Zurich, Switzerland.

The Norwegian Initiative on Small Arms Transfers has a database on the traffic in small arms. See also Who's affected by small arms?

The Graduate Institute of International Studies, Geneva also has a Small Arms Survey and a database of relevant UN conferences and resources.

Coalition to stop the use of child-soldiers. See Child Soldiers and the West Asian Crisis, September 2001.

Drug trafficking and terrorist trail, by N.K. Pant, Institute for Peace and Conflict Studies, December 1, 2000.

Transnational Terrorism: Support Networks and Trends, by Rohan Gunaratna, Faultlines, Volume 8.

Laden with terror, by Afsan Choudhury, Himal South Asian, March 1999. Bin Laden's links to Bangladesh.

Generals target arms bazaar: Pakistan bids to silence village's replica rocket launchers and copy Kalashnikovs By Rory McCarthy, The Guardian, December 15, 2000.

'War on terrorism' worth another look By Richard O'Mara, Sunspot, October 22, 2001

Blood on the Diamonds, by Holly Burkhalter, Washington Post, November 6, 2001.

We know terrorism, by Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, Washington Post, November 7, 2001.

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