CAR investigated the supply chain of weapons used in Iraq and Syria and discovered that components used in improvised explosive devices (IEDs) are built using commercial goods that do not require a government export license and fall under the radar and regulation of weapon sales.

The investigation found that the weapon supply chain in Iraq and Syria has links to markets in other countries including Turkey, India and the United States.

"ISIS forces have manufactured and deployed improved explosive devices (IEDs) across the battlefield on a quasi-industrial scale….Made of components that are cheap and readily available, IEDs have become IS forces' signature weapon", the report 'Tracing the supply of components used in ISIS IEDs' says.

Over 20 months, investigators traced the supply chain of more than 700 components used by Daesh militants to make IEDs and found 51 companies from 20 different countries were involved in the manufacture of those detonated by Daesh.

Company headquarters in Japan, Switzerland and the United States manufactured micro-controllers and transistors used in remote-controlled IEDs by ISIS militants in Iraq, the report also states.

"The companies produced, sold, or received critical material, such as chemical precursors, detonating cord, detonators, cables, wires and other electronic components."

CAR discovered that ISIS favor a specific Nokia cell phone supplied to intermediaries in United Arab Emirates and sent to distributors in Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan.

Five phones seized by Peshmerga forces from ISIS in Iraq were part of a batch of Nokia 105 RM-908  delivered to a business in Dubai.

"Microsoft Corporation, of which Microsoft Mobile is an affiliate, has provided CAR with extensive information on the chain of custody of ten mobile telephones seized from ISIS [Daesh] forces in Iraq," the report states.

"They were delivered to local providers in Erbil, Iraq or Dubai, where they were likely purchased by ISIS [Daesh] intermediaries or operatives."

ISIS Makes Most of Its Bombs Using Components From Turkey.

Turkey has the largest number of companies involved in the supply chain of IEDs to ISIS with 13 companies involved in some way with the manufacture of IEDs by Deash forces, CAR investigators found.

CAR approached representatives of the companies involved and said some were surprised and even shocked, Sputnik reported.

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