A field marshal identified Wednesday by Peru as one of the "direct participants" in a ring that smuggled guns from Jordan to Colombia via Peru is a former Jordanian chief of staff.
Field Marshal Abdel Hafez Kaabneh served under the late King Hussein and was retired by his successor, King Abdullah II, in March 1999. He was replaced by Field Marshal Mohammed Youssef Malkawi.
The other two officers identified by Peru were named as Brigadier General Abdel Razzaq Abdullah and Brigadier General Abdullah al-Ayasreh.
According to Peru, the three officers were "direct participants" in a ring that smuggled Russian-made assault rifles through Peru to Colombia's biggest and most violent insurgent group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia.
The names were revealed after Peru's President Alberto Fujimori lodged an official complaint with Jordan for "the illegal supplying of arms from this country destined for subversive groups involving Peru's territory and name."
The complaint, read by Fujimori to reporters in Lima, was presented earlier Wednesday to the Jordanian ambassador to the United Nations by his Peruvian counterpart, as the two nations do not maintain embassies.
Fujimori announced Monday that his government had broken up a multinational gunrunning ring shipping arms from Jordan to Marxist rebels in Colombia.
He said the arms were acquired in Amman, then shipped on a transport plane that stopped in the Canary Islands and Guyana before flying over Iquitos in northwestern Peru to be dropped.
On Tuesday, a Jordanian official expressed "deep surprise" at those reports, saying contacts would be made with the Peruvian government and with Interpol to find out details about the case - AMMAN (AFP)
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
