Ethiopian security forces on Wednesday recovered 20 Kalashnikov rifles and 53,921 light and heavy machine gun bullets in a sting operation in the country’s northeastern Afar Regional State.

According to Ahmed Humed, the Deputy Commissioner of Afar Region Police Commission, the illegal cache of weapons was captured during a joint sting operation carried out by the Ethiopia National Intelligence, the Police and Security Service.

Humed said the large  cache was seized on Tuesday afternoon as it was intercepted while being smuggled inside a freight truck which entered Ethiopia from neighbouring Djibouti.

The Deputy Commissioner added that in recent days, the Police Commission has intercepted several large caches of  weapons which were smuggled into Ethiopia from neighbouring countries.

Ethiopia strictly controls the licensing and movement of arms and ammunition across the country and private arms ownership is relatively rare in the East African country.

Although violent crimes are relatively rare in Ethiopia, recent incidences of armed robbery in major cities and sporadic ethnic and religious unrest have led to a surge in the demand for the ownership of illicit arms.

Ownership of arms is also seen as a sign of prestige and security in parts of the country which has had a history of rebellion and conflict.

Interestingly, in a bid to stem the rising trade in illegal weapons in the east African country, the Ethiopian government is preparing a legislation which will slam heavy prison terms on arms dealers.