Libyan civil war weapons could end up in the hands of Boko Haram - U.N. Report

The United Nations believes the large cache of weapons from the recently ended Libyan civil war could make its way into the hands of members of the radical Islamic sect Boko Haram in Nigeria as well as other al Qaeda factions, Reuters reported.

The U.N. report, which released on Thursday, trails the impact of the Libyan civil war on countries of the Sahel region, including Nigerian, Niger and Chad and further explores links between Nigeria's terrorist sect Boko Haram and al Qaeda in the north.

Boko Haram, which translates into "Western education is bad", has unleashed havoc in the northern region of Nigeria, claiming countless lives in a series of deadly attacks.

Recently the group claimed responsibility for the Kano city bombings and gun battle that left over 180 dead and several injured.

Reuters reports that the U.N. Security Council is set to discuss the report, prepared by a U.N. assessment team that met with officials from countries in the Sahel, at a meeting.

"The governments of the countries visited indicated that, in spite of efforts to control their borders, large quantities of weapons and ammunition from Libyan stockpiles were smuggled into the Sahel region," the report said.

Such weapons include "rocket-propelled grenades, machine guns with anti-aircraft visors, automatic rifles, ammunition, grenades, explosives (Semtex), and light anti-aircraft artillery (light calibre bi-tubes) mounted on vehicles," it said.

While attacks by the Boko Haram sect has grown in sophistication and frequency, weapons still used by the sect are still largely locally made.

Improvised explosive devices discovered by security operatives in Kano, following the deadly attacks one week ago, comprised of aluminum cans of soda pop, filled with powdered explosives.

Chances of more sophisticated weapons making their way across borders and into the country, prove an even greater security threat to the troubled oil-rich nation.

More advanced weapons such as surface-to-air-missiles and man-portable air defense systems, known as MANPADS, may also have reached groups in the region, the report said.

Ian Martin, U.N. special envoy to Libya, has dismissed those claims, insisting that the weapons have remained, for the most part, in Libya.

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