MADRID — Spain’s interior minister says he and EU colleagues are worried that Libyan army weapons are being trafficked and possibly sold to al Qaeda’s affiliate in North Africa.
Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba said al Qaeda of the Islamic Maghreb, or AQMI, is a growing threat that could conceivably spread outside its home of the Sahel region of Africa.
He briefed reporters Thursday during a break in a meeting with colleagues from five other EU countries and U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano.
Perez Rubalcaba says fairly sophisticated weapons from Libyan army forces fighting to keep Moammar Khadafy in power are being sold by traffickers at Libya’s southern border and possibly ending up in the hands of AQMI.