Who was getting these guns? What were they going to do? Where would we be if Berlusconi were out and a dhimmi government in power in Italy? From Reuters, with thanks to Susan:
ROME (Reuters) - Italian customs has seized more than 8,000 Kalashnikovs and other weapons on a ship headed to the United States, officials said Tuesday.The arms, worth about six million euros, were discovered aboard a ship arriving from Romania that pulled into the southern Italian port of Gioia Tauro on its way to the United States, Italy's customs said in a statement.
According to travel documents, the arms are the property of a large U.S. company headquartered in the U.S. state of Georgia.
"We know that the destination was North America, but we don't effectively know if that's where the arms were going," a customs official told RAI state television.
The arms were found inside three different containers during a routine customs check earlier this week. They were confiscated due to discrepancies in the customs forms but the news was only made public Tuesday.
The customs office said the weapons had been described as "common guns" instead of assault rifles and longer-range combat arms in the travel documentation.
Romania's National Agency for Export Control (ANCEX) said in a statement: "There have been transfers of weapons of small caliber and of light weapons from Romania to the United States.
"Their export was done according to Romanian law, on the basis of individual export authorizations and on confirmation from the American authorities prior to the transfer," the ANCEX statement said.
I hope this answers wether or not we need to be armed. I know I am and will be.
On second thought maybe we need Janet Reno to be in the NWO so she can help to develope "safer bullets".
Personal preferance, I'll take a TnP90 over an AK any day.
I'd take this one with a grain of salt.
The Romanians, among others, have been shipping AK-47/AK-74 lookalikes to the US for quite a while now. These are semi-automatic only (civilian) versions of the select fire military weapons. All you have to do is pick up an copy of The Shotgun News and look through it. You'll see dozens of dealers advertising Romanian SAR-1, SAR-2 and SAR-3 rifles for under US$300 each.
The value of the shipment is what makes me suspicious. Dividing 8,000 guns into 6,000,000 Euros gives a unit price of 750 Euros or about US$900 - Far too expensive for the civilian guns, and far too cheap for legal full auto or black market full auto.
Rick-
Any idea what the bulk wholesale price of legal or black market full auto weapons is?
I have no idea. My guess is that you could browse the DoD web site to see what they paid for their last order of rifles. That would certainly give you a benchmark. Maybe a Freedom of Information request?
I did a search on Google for "NFA weapons" and got this link (among others):
http://home.comcast.net/~americanfirearmpage/title2.htm
It's a page of links to dealers and other info sites.
I watched a show last night call "Rebuilding the Taliban". They stated on the show that in Pakistan you can buy a knock off full auto AK47 in that market for 150.00 American. The gun dealers were turning out several a day, and it is estimated that there are well over 1000 makers in Northern Pakistan along the Afganistan boarder. I do not know the maker of these guns in Italy, but I think it is safe to say it is just a matter of time before there are running gun battles in our streets with Jihadinazis.
"Italian customs has seized more than 8,000 Kalashnikovs ***** and other weapons ***** on a ship headed to the United States, officials said Tuesday."
Look between the *****'s and that should about clear up any of the costs not matching up.
I'm so happy I found this post today. Later on I'm going to post yet another article in my blog about this! I have written a lenghty article (in 3 parts) few weeks ago about this port in the middle of Calabria! Nothing of this kind ever happens in Calabria, in Gioia Tauro, unless the local mafia, the 'Ndrangheta, allows it. They have been shipping weapons (all sort), money (millions and millions), terrorists (yes, inside containers), drugs! Today exploit is just a lucky strike. The same ship has been doing Black Sea-Gioia Tauro at least three times this year! Gioia Tauro is the largest transshipment port of the Mediterranean.
I have written about an almost certain link between Islamic terrorists and the 'Ndrangheta (the most powerful of all the Italian mafias).
I don't want to bore you with a long comment, so I leave it here for now. Thanks a million, Jihad Watch, for this article! Trust me, it's real, it's happening...
Nice post Spartacus!
I had just caught a quick blurb on the Fox News web site about this very story. Not the detail about the actual weapons, just the Italian mafia prosecutor's comments that they have some evidence that there is a strong "business" relationship between between the jihadi and the gumbara.
I guess that when you absolutely positively have to get it there, you call Cosa Nostra Express.
Where can I read your blog for more on the story?
Just click on "spartacus" and you should be taken straight to my blog. Remember, Cosa Nostra, the Sicilian mafia, is now just "folklore". The 'Ndrangheta is the only one that counts...unfortunately!
"Their export was done according to Romanian law, on the basis of individual export authorizations and on confirmation from the American authorities prior to the transfer," the ANCEX statement said.
2 questions:
1. Why are the Italians confiscating legal shipments of legally purchased products that are not bound for their country and are legal in both the country of origin and the country they are destined for?
2. Why is this "Jihad Watch" worthy news?
The shipping of war-like weaponry is regulated by strict regulations. In this case, the weapons have been tampered with in order to change their status of war-like weapons into "common" guns; the alteration could then be altered to its original state from the recipient!
Spartacus, I believe you are incorrect.
It is perfectly legal to import Romanian SAR-1, SAR-2 and WASR-10 rifles (which are all semi auto versions of the AK-47). It is not a simple task to convert these rifles to full auto. They are NOT full auto rifles "converted" to semi auto, they are and always where semi automatic rifles for civilian/LEO consumption.
Nobody is disputing the bona fide of the Romanians. Nobody is disputing that it is perfectly legal to import weapons from Romania. The problem is that, according to Customs Police, they were confiscated due to discrepancies in the customs forms.
The customs office said the weapons had been described as "common guns" instead of assault rifles and longer-range combat arms in the travel documentation.
Okay, I buy that ... bureaucrats live and die by their paperwork ... I still don't see how this is "Jihad Watch" worthy.
When I am at my pc, I come to this excellent site on average every 10-15 minutes! I read the informative articles, intelligent posts and the comments with great enthusiasm. I don't know anybody here personally, but, I believe, we all share the same values and principles. Without hypocrisy.
Dunno if I'd want a Pakistani knock-off of the AK-47.
Years ago, up in the North Frontier Province of Pakistan, a tribesman was showing off to us a brand-new, locally-made, working replica of an SLE .303 rifle (a far simpler weapon than the Kalashnikov and one whose copying the cottage-industry manufacturers in that autonomous zone have had nearly a century to perfect).
The breach exploded dramatically & he lost an eye and a side of his face.
Chuckling at our squeamishness, we were told by the men in the arms-bazaar that this type of accident, and worse, took place daily there.
Dear Italy: Thank you for showing the world the true meaning of Christianity. Stoppage of that cache of murder weapons will, even if only for a short time, buy our world a little more peace. In the words of Jesus: "Blessed are the peacemakers." Every little bit counts. Thank you and God bless.
Dear Italy.
If indeed the rifles were meant for the USA please give them back so we can use them when the jihadist attack.
Jesus would agree!
The Command of Christ
And He said to them, "When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?" So they said, "Nothing." Then He said to them, "But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one. For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in Me: 'And He was numbered with the transgressors.' For the things concerning Me have an end." So they said, "Lord, look, here are two swords." And He said to them, "It is enough." -Luke 22:35-38
There are some among those who profess Christianity that advocate the disarmament of all but the police and military. They will not be swayed by the fact that the Constitution of the United States of America regards the right to keep and bear arms as a pre-existent prerogative of a free people. So be it. But then, how do they interpret our Lord's charge to buy a sword?
Moses killed some infidels.
I don't think God,Moses or Jesus would have a problem with Americans protecting their life with an AK47 or an AR15 or a sword
Going to Georgia?
I suspect some gun enthusiast(s) bought them and are going to sell them for a profit on eBay.
If terrorists want weapons in the US they can buy them here.
to Zundfolge: it would seem this story is appropriate to jihad watch as it demonstrates the weapons economy that junkyard in the above blog has so succinctly pointed out. this story made the front page of the "new york post" today. that by definition makes it extremely important.
If you guys in the USA think you have problems look at Canada. We have already been virtually disarmed and the police forces can stop you anywhere and any time to demand ID. If you don't comply you can be charged with interfering with an officer in the lawful fulfillment of is job. SEIG HEIL is almost here, or at least Orwell 1984. Keep your guns!!
This shipment of weapons has been declared fully legal by Italian, Romanian, and US police agencies. The only reason it hit the news is the long-standing anti-gun bias of the liberal media.
Weapons that are illegal to sell in the US are still legal to import. The importer has them delivered to a bonded location where the parts that make the weapons illegal in the US are removed and destroyed. Then new parts, made in the US and not capable of automatic or select fire operation, are used to assemble the weapon back into a legal, saleable rifle.
Since the liberal anti-gun pinheads steadfastly refuse to acknowledge two practical and one very philosophical points (1: criminals don't care about gun laws, 2:the "evil" looking guns perform exactly the same function as "nice" looking guns, 3:the second amendment was specifically written to guarantee individual ownership of military-style personal arms) they see another opportunity to bombast the evils of military weapons on the front pages of every newspaper and broadcast. But the retraction and clarification, that overzealous paper-pushers interfered with a completely legal transaction, is going to be reported (if at all) buried in the backs of a few newspapers.
I wish the public-school educated "intelligentsia" would remember that the American Revolution was started when the British treid to take the Colonists' guns and ammunition. Children these days think it was started over some kind of tea party.
Hitler, Mao, Lenin, and Kerry all agree on one thing: the people should not be trusted with firearms.