The report by the U.N. Security Council's Group of Experts - who monitor an arms embargo imposed on Libya at the start of an uprising in 2011 which ousted leader Muammar Gaddafi - said on Wednesday that the North African state had become a key source of weapons in the region as its nascent government struggles to exert authority.
UN experts said that the arms trafficking had been organized from various locations in Libya, including Misrata and Benghazi, through Turkey or northern Lebanon: "The significant size of some shipments and the logistics involved suggest that representatives of the Libyan local authorities might have at least been aware of the transfers, if not actually directly involved."
The experts also said they found that Qatar and the United Arab Emirates had violated the arms embargo on Libya during the 2011 conflict, supplying weapons and ammunition to anti-Gaddafi forces. Qatar denied the accusation, while the UAE had not responded, the report says. The transfers also involved Armenia, Albania and Ukraine, according to the panel.
The recipients of the arms are empowered not only by the sheer number of new arsenal in their possession, but also by new kinds of weapons.
"Cases, both proven and under investigation, of illicit transfers from Libya in violation of the embargo cover more than 12 countries and include heavy and light weapons, including man-portable air defense systems, small arms and related ammunition and explosives and mines," the experts wrote in the report.
Proliferation of portable surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) has long been deemed one of the most alarming consequences of the turmoil in Libya, as such weapons may be used by terrorists to shoot down civilian aircraft.
Egypt is facing the worst influx of Libyan arms, the report says, with a large portion being directed to armed groups in the Sinai; this poses a serious internal security threat for Cairo amid its political turbulence.
Other trafficking destinations for these weapons include Syria and Mali, both of which have witnessed violent conflict and seen radical groups gain significant influence. Some Libyan ammunition has been found in Somalia.