WCO conducts training for Palestine Customs on Small Arms and Light Weapons

From 5 to 8 July 2021, the WCO Secretariat conducted a virtual training for officials from Palestine Customs on the detection of illicit Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW). The training was funded by the External Action Service of the European Union as a part of the European Union - League of Arab States (EU-LAS) Project in support of the fight against the illicit Trade in and the proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons in the Member States of the League of Arab States. The project is jointly implemented by the WCO, INTERPOL and the Small Arms Survey. These workshops are intended for all WCO Member Customs administrations in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region.

The illicit use of SALW threatens security and stability on both national and regional levels and Customs forms the first line of defense in protecting society. The workshop trained officials to profile and undertake effective examination of shipments that may contain weapons, ammunition or weapon parts. It also prepared officers to detain or seize a weapon and gather information to enable effective actions to be undertaken.

This training marked the conclusion of the activities for Phase 1 of the EU-LAS Project.  Phase 2 of the project is currently under consideration at the EU and would seek to continue the capacity building activities undertaken in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region as well as provide for regional training events and more practical trainings on the detection of illicit SALW at borders.

For more information on the WCO Security Programme, the EU-LAS project or how to access WCO SALW training, please contact us on: WCOSecurityProgramme@wcoomd.org