Libyan missiles looted; "they could turn all of North Africa into a no-fly-zone"

The AP reported in late August that, with Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi essentially ousted from power, concerns have arisen over the "Libyan government's weapons stockpiles, including a stew of deadly chemicals [mustard gas etc.], raw nuclear material and some 30,000 shoulder-fired rockets that officials fear could fall into terrorists' hands in the chaos of Moammar Gadhafi's downfall..."

Well, apparently those concerns were well-founded, for indeed some of these weapons are already missing:

A potent stash of Russian-made surface-to-air missiles is missing from a huge Tripoli weapons warehouse amid reports of weapons looting across war-torn Libya.

They are Grinch SA-24 shoulder-launched missiles, also known as Igla-S missiles, the equivalent of U.S.-made Stinger missiles...

Peter Bouckaert, Human Rights Watch emergencies director, told CNN he has seen the same pattern in armories looted elsewhere in Libya, noting that "in every city we arrive, the first thing to disappear are the surface-to-air missiles."...

"We are talking about some 20,000 surface-to-air missiles in all of Libya, and I've seen cars packed with them." he said. "They could turn all of North Africa into a no-fly zone."...

Western officials worry that weapons from the storage sites will end up in the hands of militants or adversaries like Iran.

The governments of neighboring Niger and Chad have both said that weapons from Libya are already being smuggled into their countries, and they are destined for al Qaeda. They include detonators and a plastic explosive called Semtex. Chad's president said they include SA-7 missiles....

Bouckaert said one or two of the missing artillery rounds are "enough to make a car bomb."...

No doubt about it, the Libyan uprising is already netting positive results....

Related news: Report: Al-Qaeda branch has acquired Libyan surface-to-air missiles, threatening air travel