HOW HE SEES IT S. Arabia ready market for weapons from Iraq

By MOHAMMED FAWZI
INSTITUTE FOR WAR & amp; PEACE REPORTING
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Arms dealers have no shortage of domestic clients, but their latest and most lucrative market is Saudi Arabia, where increased demand for small arms has caused a spike in prices of weapons inside Iraq.
Abu Ahmed, an elderly man from Baghdad, has an eclectic local clientele for his gunrunning business, finding buyers among northern Kurds and southern Shiites as well as Sunnis from Fallujah and western Iraq.
"I make a lot of money easily," he said.
And now he says his illegal business has expanded abroad.
He attributes the booming Saudi market to recent attacks by Islamic militants there, which he said have undermined confidence in the Kingdom's ability to provide security or prevent even crimes against civilians, such as kidnappings.
The dealer described a smuggling pipeline involving multiple participants. The starting point comes when Abu Ahmed's family approaches other dealers in Iraq to purchase arms.
One favored weapon is the Browning pistol, which can be bought on the domestic market for about $270, and eventually sold to a Saudi arms trader for about $500.
Ahmed described how he and his sons transported their cargo southwards via the holy city of Karbala. They used an old car and flew banners from the windows to make the authorities think that they were pilgrims.
Desert road
In Karbala, Ahmed switched to a newer and more reliable vehicle for the next stage of the journey -- the desert road leading through the southern town of Arar to the Saudi border. This was seen as a good route because checkpoints are few and far between.
Ahmed said he met up with his Saudi counterpart about 25 miles from the Saudi border. There, he handed over the weapons to Iraqi and Saudi shepherds, who ultimately smuggled the arms into the Kingdom.
But despite the lucrative trade and growing market, Ahmed said that he no longer makes the trip to smuggle guns into Saudi Arabia.
"Smuggling is hard and dangerous work," he said, "and I did only one operation." After that, he said, "I quit."
X Mohammed Fawzi is an Iraqi journalist who writes for The Institute for War & amp; Peace Reporting, London. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune.