Sarkis Soghanalian
Encyclopedia
Sarkis Garabet Soghanalian , nicknamed Merchant of Death, was an international private arms dealer who gained fame for being the "Cold War
's largest arms merchant". and the lead seller of firearms and weaponry to the former government of Iraq
under Saddam Hussein
during the 1980s.
Soghanalian, then a permanent resident living in Virginia Gardens, Florida
, was hired on behalf of the Central Intelligence Agency
to sell arms to help Iraq in the midst of the Iran–Iraq War. With the encouragement of the Reagan Administration
and the backing of US intelligence agencies, he coordinated the transaction of several crucial arms deals, including the sale of artillery
from France which cost an estimated $1.4 billion USD.
In addition to Iraq, he also sold weapons to other groups such as the Polisario forces in Mauritania
, to Phalange militias during the Lebanese Civil War
and to Latin American countries such as Nicaragua
, Ecuador
, and to Argentina
during the Falklands War
. He extended his services to other regions of the world including Africa. Prior to the beginning of the Persian Gulf War
, Soghanalian appeared in several television interviews, detailing the work he had done in Iraq along with naming several top US government officials who were involved in the arms transactions.
With this, the Justice Department charged Soghanalian for "conspiracy of shipping unauthorized weapons" to Iraq where he was found guilty and sentenced to jail. He was released several years later when he helped the Clinton administration unsuccessfully break up a counterfeiting ring in Lebanon. He moved his office from the United States and opened up operations in France and Jordan
. In 2001, was arrested once more by the US government on bank fraud
charges but was released a year later after he revealed the weapons transactions deals that were going on between CIA and Peru
, an account which arguably led to the collapse of the Alberto Fujimori
government.
family in what is now current-day Iskanderun, Turkey. In late 1939, his family moved to Lebanon
. Due to the poor economic conditions his family lived in at the time, he decided to drop out of high school and joined the French Army
and served in a tank
division
. It was from his experience in the military that brought him into the world of weaponry and in his words, he "adapted to it from childhood and kept going."
Soghanalian later took up a job as a ski instructor in Lebanon, where he met and married his American wife.
countries including Bulgaria
, Hungary
and Poland
. Among the factions he sold to was the Christian
Phalange militia
. The arms consisted largely of small arms
and infantry weapons. After the civil war, he moved his arms operations to other countries, supplying various factions in Ecuador
Mauritania
and Nicaragua
, Mobutu Sese Seko
's Zaire
, an American C-130 Hercules
transport plane to Libya's Muammar al-Gaddafi
, Argentina
in the 1982 Falklands War
until moving on to Saddam Hussein
's Iraq
.
a contingent of Marines in Lebanon in 1958. American intelligence officials had described him as a cooperative and reliable source in Lebanon, making him an ideal candidate to conduct the arms deal with Iraq. With the beginning of the Iran–Iraq War in 1980, he began to sell weapons to Iraq with the backing of the United States. Since there was an embargo placed against Iraq, the weapons were funneled through various countries. His most significant deal came with the sale of several French 155mm self-propelled
howitzer
s that cost an estimated $1.4 billion.
Iraqi leaders had initially approached the Reagan administration
on the purchase of American 175mm artillery, were turned down but then encouraged by American officials to procure the weapons through private arms dealers. The Iraqis turned to Soghanalian, then based in Miami, Florida
in 1981, who in turn approached several European governments. He found France's leader, François Mitterrand
, open to the idea so long as the deal was kept secret since Iran
was holding French hostages at the time and so did not wish to risk further worsening relations with it. The U.S.
encouraged Mitterrand to move forward with the sale, which was entitled "Vulcan", as it passed through a complex set of transactions.
Soghanalian defended the sales when they were revealed on the eve of the Persian Gulf War
in January 1991. He stated that "We didn't give him those weapons to fight U.S. forces. The weapons were given to him to fight the common enemy at that time. Which he did. There was no need to have direct confrontation with him and endanger American troops." His other transactions to Iraq also included artillery from South Africa
, which he routed through Austria, acting as a "middle man" to bypass the United Nations
' sanctions
. Soghanalian helped sell to the Iraqi army military uniforms worth $280,000,000 from Romania.
In an interview on 60 Minutes
, Soghanalian stated that top-level American officials were aware from the beginning of his deals in Iraq including former US President Richard Nixon
, former Vice-President Spiro Agnew
, Nixon's chief of staff Colonel
Jack Brennan and attorney general John N. Mitchell
. Encouraged by other senior officials, Nixon had written a letter on behalf of him to expedite the sale of the uniforms to Iraq. He continued on to say that "They were not only in the uniform business. They would sell their mothers if they could, just to make the money." Soghanalian also predicted that the ensuing war between coalition troops and Iraq would become a lengthy and costly conflict much like the Iran–Iraq War because of the experience of Iraqi troops and the weapons it possessed; this assertion proved to be incorrect as the war "concluded within two months".
however stated that his revelations had been found to be "extremely disturbing to every American. They are disturbing to Mr. Soghanalian. He gives a first-hand description of official and unofficial American involvement in the enormous buildup of arms to Saddam Hussein."
His testimony lead to the George H. W. Bush administration open criminal charges in 1991 and convicted him on six counts for possession of armament and intent to sell to Iraq
. The weapons included 103 helicopter gunship
s from the Hughes Helicopters
corporation and two rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) launchers from a 1983 deal. A year later, he was fined $20,000 and sentenced to six years in prison. However, in 1993 his sentence was reduced to two years; although the exact reasons remain unknown, his attorney stated that Soghanalian had given intelligence to US law-enforcement officials which lead them to an unsuccessful attempt to break up a $100 billion counterfeiting operation in the Bekaa valley in Lebanon. In 1995, after he was released, he moved to France and opened offices there and in Amman, Jordan.
assault rifles, originally from East Germany and Jordan, intended for use by the Peru
vian government but most of it fell into the possession of the Colombia
n leftist guerrilla organization FARC
, which were opposed to the US-backed government of Colombia. Soghanalian had been able to purchase the rifles for $55 apiece in addition to a $20 transportation, and "shipping and handling" fee. Several months later, it was revealed that the CIA had backed the deal to arm Peruvian intelligence head Vladimiro Montesinos
.
was Yuri Orlov, a fictional international arms trader during the 1980s and 1990s. The character, a US-raised Ukrainian, was a composite of at least five real life arms dealers, including Soghanalian.
.
Infamous arms dealer lived and worked in Virginia Gardens, Florida
. Read more: Infamous arms dealer lived and worked in Virginia Gardens. Miami Herald, The (FL) n.pag. Retrieved October 25, 2011, from NewsBank on-line database (Access World News)
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
's largest arms merchant". and the lead seller of firearms and weaponry to the former government of Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
under Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
during the 1980s.
Soghanalian, then a permanent resident living in Virginia Gardens, Florida
Virginia Gardens, Florida
Virginia Gardens is a village in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The population was 2,348 at the 2000 census. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2004 estimates, the village had a population of 2,294.- History :...
, was hired on behalf of the Central Intelligence Agency
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
to sell arms to help Iraq in the midst of the Iran–Iraq War. With the encouragement of the Reagan Administration
Reagan Administration
The United States presidency of Ronald Reagan, also known as the Reagan administration, was a Republican administration headed by Ronald Reagan from January 20, 1981, to January 20, 1989....
and the backing of US intelligence agencies, he coordinated the transaction of several crucial arms deals, including the sale of artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
from France which cost an estimated $1.4 billion USD.
In addition to Iraq, he also sold weapons to other groups such as the Polisario forces in Mauritania
Mauritania
Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
, to Phalange militias during the Lebanese Civil War
Lebanese Civil War
The Lebanese Civil War was a multifaceted civil war in Lebanon. The war lasted from 1975 to 1990 and resulted in an estimated 150,000 to 230,000 civilian fatalities. Another one million people were wounded, and today approximately 350,000 people remain displaced. There was also a mass exodus of...
and to Latin American countries such as Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
, Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
, and to Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
during the Falklands War
Falklands War
The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...
. He extended his services to other regions of the world including Africa. Prior to the beginning of the Persian Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
, Soghanalian appeared in several television interviews, detailing the work he had done in Iraq along with naming several top US government officials who were involved in the arms transactions.
With this, the Justice Department charged Soghanalian for "conspiracy of shipping unauthorized weapons" to Iraq where he was found guilty and sentenced to jail. He was released several years later when he helped the Clinton administration unsuccessfully break up a counterfeiting ring in Lebanon. He moved his office from the United States and opened up operations in France and Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
. In 2001, was arrested once more by the US government on bank fraud
Bank fraud
Bank fraud is the use of fraudulent means to obtain money, assets, or other property owned or held by a financial institution, or to obtain money from depositors by fraudulently representing to be a bank or financial institution. In many instances, bank fraud is a criminal offense...
charges but was released a year later after he revealed the weapons transactions deals that were going on between CIA and Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, an account which arguably led to the collapse of the Alberto Fujimori
Alberto Fujimori
Alberto Fujimori Fujimori served as President of Peru from 28 July 1990 to 17 November 2000. A controversial figure, Fujimori has been credited with the creation of Fujimorism, uprooting terrorism in Peru and restoring its macroeconomic stability, though his methods have drawn charges of...
government.
Early life
Soghanalian was born to an ArmenianArmenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
family in what is now current-day Iskanderun, Turkey. In late 1939, his family moved to Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
. Due to the poor economic conditions his family lived in at the time, he decided to drop out of high school and joined the French Army
French Army
The French Army, officially the Armée de Terre , is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces.As of 2010, the army employs 123,100 regulars, 18,350 part-time reservists and 7,700 Legionnaires. All soldiers are professionals, following the suspension of conscription, voted in...
and served in a tank
Tank
A tank is a tracked, armoured fighting vehicle designed for front-line combat which combines operational mobility, tactical offensive, and defensive capabilities...
division
Division (military)
A division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of between 10,000 and 20,000 soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, and in turn several divisions typically make up a corps...
. It was from his experience in the military that brought him into the world of weaponry and in his words, he "adapted to it from childhood and kept going."
Soghanalian later took up a job as a ski instructor in Lebanon, where he met and married his American wife.
Lebanon
With the beginning of the Lebanese Civil War in the 1970s, Soghanalian was introduced to the arms trade. He sold his first consignment of firearms in 1973, which was mostly American weaponry since the Lebanese military had largely been armed by the United States. However, he was soon able to procure weaponry from a multitude of Eastern blocEastern bloc
The term Eastern Bloc or Communist Bloc refers to the former communist states of Eastern and Central Europe, generally the Soviet Union and the countries of the Warsaw Pact...
countries including Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
and Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. Among the factions he sold to was the Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
Phalange militia
Kataeb Party
The Lebanese Phalanges , better known in English as the Phalange , is a traditional right-wing Lebanese political party. Although it is officially secular, it is mainly supported by Maronite Christians. The party played a major role in the Lebanese War...
. The arms consisted largely of small arms
Small arms
Small arms is a term of art used by armed forces to denote infantry weapons an individual soldier may carry. The description is usually limited to revolvers, pistols, submachine guns, carbines, assault rifles, battle rifles, multiple barrel firearms, sniper rifles, squad automatic weapons, light...
and infantry weapons. After the civil war, he moved his arms operations to other countries, supplying various factions in Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
Mauritania
Mauritania
Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
and Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
, Mobutu Sese Seko
Mobutu Sese Seko
Mobutu Sese Seko Nkuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga , commonly known as Mobutu or Mobutu Sese Seko , born Joseph-Désiré Mobutu, was the President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1965 to 1997...
's Zaire
Zaire
The Republic of Zaire was the name of the present Democratic Republic of the Congo between 27 October 1971 and 17 May 1997. The name of Zaire derives from the , itself an adaptation of the Kongo word nzere or nzadi, or "the river that swallows all rivers".-Self-proclaimed Father of the Nation:In...
, an American C-130 Hercules
C-130 Hercules
The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is a four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built originally by Lockheed, now Lockheed Martin. Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally designed as a troop, medical evacuation, and cargo transport...
transport plane to Libya's Muammar al-Gaddafi
Muammar al-Gaddafi
Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar Gaddafi or "September 1942" 20 October 2011), commonly known as Muammar Gaddafi or Colonel Gaddafi, was the official ruler of the Libyan Arab Republic from 1969 to 1977 and then the "Brother Leader" of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya from 1977 to 2011.He seized power in a...
, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
in the 1982 Falklands War
Falklands War
The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...
until moving on to Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
's Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
.
Iraq
According to Soghanalian, the United States was fully aware of his operations when he moved on to Iraq: "The Americans knew what I was doing, every minute, every hour. If I drank a glass of water, they were aware of it and what kind of water it was." He had built a largely amiable relationship with the United States ever since it landedLebanon crisis of 1958
The 1958 Lebanon crisis was a Lebanese political crisis caused by political and religious tensions in the country. It included a U.S. military intervention.-Background:...
a contingent of Marines in Lebanon in 1958. American intelligence officials had described him as a cooperative and reliable source in Lebanon, making him an ideal candidate to conduct the arms deal with Iraq. With the beginning of the Iran–Iraq War in 1980, he began to sell weapons to Iraq with the backing of the United States. Since there was an embargo placed against Iraq, the weapons were funneled through various countries. His most significant deal came with the sale of several French 155mm self-propelled
Self-propelled artillery
Self-propelled artillery vehicles are combat vehicles armed with artillery. Within the term are covered self-propelled guns and rocket artillery...
howitzer
Howitzer
A howitzer is a type of artillery piece characterized by a relatively short barrel and the use of comparatively small propellant charges to propel projectiles at relatively high trajectories, with a steep angle of descent...
s that cost an estimated $1.4 billion.
Iraqi leaders had initially approached the Reagan administration
Reagan Administration
The United States presidency of Ronald Reagan, also known as the Reagan administration, was a Republican administration headed by Ronald Reagan from January 20, 1981, to January 20, 1989....
on the purchase of American 175mm artillery, were turned down but then encouraged by American officials to procure the weapons through private arms dealers. The Iraqis turned to Soghanalian, then based in Miami, Florida
Miami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
in 1981, who in turn approached several European governments. He found France's leader, François Mitterrand
François Mitterrand
François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand was the 21st President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra, serving from 1981 until 1995. He is the longest-serving President of France and, as leader of the Socialist Party, the only figure from the left so far elected President...
, open to the idea so long as the deal was kept secret since Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
was holding French hostages at the time and so did not wish to risk further worsening relations with it. The U.S.
encouraged Mitterrand to move forward with the sale, which was entitled "Vulcan", as it passed through a complex set of transactions.
Soghanalian defended the sales when they were revealed on the eve of the Persian Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
in January 1991. He stated that "We didn't give him those weapons to fight U.S. forces. The weapons were given to him to fight the common enemy at that time. Which he did. There was no need to have direct confrontation with him and endanger American troops." His other transactions to Iraq also included artillery from South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, which he routed through Austria, acting as a "middle man" to bypass the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
' sanctions
International sanctions
International sanctions are actions taken by countries against others for political reasons, either unilaterally or multilaterally.There are several types of sanctions....
. Soghanalian helped sell to the Iraqi army military uniforms worth $280,000,000 from Romania.
In an interview on 60 Minutes
60 Minutes
60 Minutes is an American television news magazine, which has run on CBS since 1968. The program was created by producer Don Hewitt who set it apart by using a unique style of reporter-centered investigation....
, Soghanalian stated that top-level American officials were aware from the beginning of his deals in Iraq including former US President Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
, former Vice-President Spiro Agnew
Spiro Agnew
Spiro Theodore Agnew was the 39th Vice President of the United States , serving under President Richard Nixon, and the 55th Governor of Maryland...
, Nixon's chief of staff Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
Jack Brennan and attorney general John N. Mitchell
John N. Mitchell
John Newton Mitchell was the Attorney General of the United States from 1969 to 1972 under President Richard Nixon...
. Encouraged by other senior officials, Nixon had written a letter on behalf of him to expedite the sale of the uniforms to Iraq. He continued on to say that "They were not only in the uniform business. They would sell their mothers if they could, just to make the money." Soghanalian also predicted that the ensuing war between coalition troops and Iraq would become a lengthy and costly conflict much like the Iran–Iraq War because of the experience of Iraqi troops and the weapons it possessed; this assertion proved to be incorrect as the war "concluded within two months".
Arrest and conviction
Soghanalian's testimony damaged the reputation of many American government officials. The United States CongressUnited States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
however stated that his revelations had been found to be "extremely disturbing to every American. They are disturbing to Mr. Soghanalian. He gives a first-hand description of official and unofficial American involvement in the enormous buildup of arms to Saddam Hussein."
His testimony lead to the George H. W. Bush administration open criminal charges in 1991 and convicted him on six counts for possession of armament and intent to sell to Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
. The weapons included 103 helicopter gunship
Gunship
The term "gunship" is used in several contexts, all sharing the general idea of a light craft armed with heavy guns.-In Navy:In the Navy, the term originally appeared in the mid-19th century as a less-common synonym for gunboat.-In military aviation:...
s from the Hughes Helicopters
Hughes Helicopters
Hughes Helicopters was a major manufacturer of military and civil helicopters from the 1950s to the 1980s.The company began in 1947, as a unit of Hughes Aircraft, then was part of the Hughes Tool Company after 1955. It became the Hughes Helicopter Division, Summa Corporation in 1972, and was...
corporation and two rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) launchers from a 1983 deal. A year later, he was fined $20,000 and sentenced to six years in prison. However, in 1993 his sentence was reduced to two years; although the exact reasons remain unknown, his attorney stated that Soghanalian had given intelligence to US law-enforcement officials which lead them to an unsuccessful attempt to break up a $100 billion counterfeiting operation in the Bekaa valley in Lebanon. In 1995, after he was released, he moved to France and opened offices there and in Amman, Jordan.
Peru
In 1999 Soghanalian arranged for an air drop of 10,000 AK-47AK-47
The AK-47 is a selective-fire, gas-operated 7.62×39mm assault rifle, first developed in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is officially known as Avtomat Kalashnikova . It is also known as a Kalashnikov, an "AK", or in Russian slang, Kalash.Design work on the AK-47 began in the last year...
assault rifles, originally from East Germany and Jordan, intended for use by the Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
vian government but most of it fell into the possession of the Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
n leftist guerrilla organization FARC
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia
The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army is a Marxist–Leninist revolutionary guerrilla organization based in Colombia which is involved in the ongoing Colombian armed conflict, currently involved in drug dealing and crimes against the civilians..FARC-EP is a peasant army which...
, which were opposed to the US-backed government of Colombia. Soghanalian had been able to purchase the rifles for $55 apiece in addition to a $20 transportation, and "shipping and handling" fee. Several months later, it was revealed that the CIA had backed the deal to arm Peruvian intelligence head Vladimiro Montesinos
Vladimiro Montesinos
Vladimiro Ilyich Montesinos Torres was the long-standing head of Peru's intelligence service, Servicio de Inteligencia Nacional , under President Alberto Fujimori. In 2000, secret videos, which he had recorded, were televised that showed his bribing an elected congressman to leave the opposition...
.
Inspiration for Lord of War
The main character of the 2005 film Lord of WarLord of War
Lord of War is a 2005 French-German-American action drama film written and directed by Andrew Niccol and starring Nicolas Cage. It was released in the United States on September 16, 2005, with the DVD following on January 17, 2006 and the Blu-ray Disc on July 27, 2006.Cage plays an illegal arms...
was Yuri Orlov, a fictional international arms trader during the 1980s and 1990s. The character, a US-raised Ukrainian, was a composite of at least five real life arms dealers, including Soghanalian.
Death
Soghanalian died on October 5, 2011 at the Hialeah Hospital in Hialeah, FloridaHialeah, Florida
Hialeah is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 226,419. As of 2009, the population estimate by the U. S...
.
Infamous arms dealer lived and worked in Virginia Gardens, Florida
Virginia Gardens, Florida
Virginia Gardens is a village in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The population was 2,348 at the 2000 census. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2004 estimates, the village had a population of 2,294.- History :...
. Read more: Infamous arms dealer lived and worked in Virginia Gardens. Miami Herald, The (FL) n.pag. Retrieved October 25, 2011, from NewsBank on-line database (Access World News)
External links
- Merchants of Death 1999 documentary that travels into the lives of the two biggest private arms dealers in the world—Sarkis Soghanalian and Samuel CummingsSamuel CummingsSamuel Cummings, was an American small arms dealer. He founded the International Armament Corporation in 1953, a company which came to dominate the free world market in private arms sales.-Biography:Cummings was born in Philadelphia and became interested in weapons after acquiring a Maxim Gun...
- "CIA FOIA Report detailing possible arms drop from Miami, Florida"