The World Customs Organization (WCO) recently demonstrated the important role Customs play in protecting society from the illicit movement of dangerous materials by carrying out the first ever operation focusing on the disruption of illicit trafficking of nuclear or radioactive materials.
With 89 Customs administrations from around the world participating in the Operation, codenamed Stingray, a total of 51 seizures were reported by 18 different Administrations in just a three-week period.
In addition, seizures of narcotics and other illicit goods, while not the focus of the Operation, provided further insight into the variety of concealment methods and the value of strengthened detection capacity across all risk areas.
Operation Stingray was the first WCO Operation to focus on detections involving nuclear and other radioactive (R/N) Materials Out of Regulatory Control (MORC), raising Customs' awareness of the threats associated with the illicit trafficking of R/N materials and its critical role in detecting these materials and preventing their further circulation.
This Operation was part of the global initiative led by the WCO's Radiological and Nuclear Detection Awareness (RANDA) project, which is implemented in partnership with the U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), with support from the IAEA, INTERPOL and the WCO's Regional Intelligence Liaison Offices (RILOs).
Source: WCO