Illicit Flows And Trafficking Southern Europe-Maghreb
ated trans-Saharan trade ; Ben Gardane ( 530 km from Tunis ) was born around 1898 – 1900 from the colonial division as a checkpoint on the borders of the two countries .
Ben Gardane-Ras Jedir Border Zone : The Tribal Dimension
In the whole region , on the Tunisian side , rather , the tribal confederation ( in
the nineteenth century , nomads ) of the Ouerghamma predominates . Within it , there are the Accara , Jebelia , Khazour , Ouderna , and Touazine tribes and on the Libyan side , there is the Nouayel tribe . Historically , the Touazine and Nouayel tribes were allies ; as legitimists , these two tribes had long supported Ben Ali and Gaddafi . Forming the “ Border Cartel ,” these discreet and distrustful tribes avoid attracting attention — no ostentation or conspicuous constructions .
Since the fall of Ben Ali and Gaddafi , other tribal actors have invested the game of trafficking , notably those of Jbel Nefoussa , Nalouti , Zintani , etc ., who are more “ revolutionary ” or Islamist . Among the Ouerghamma , the Ouderna of Tataouine engage in a significant traffic of gold and currency from the jihad of the Syria-Iraq zone , going to the Maghreb , on behalf of the Islamic State , in view of its future establishment . In the youth of these tribes from now on , there are hybrids , local Islamicized thugs , who are fascinated by the Islamic State .
Border Zone Ben Gardane-Ras Jedir : History of Trafficking
A
zone of smuggling for thousands of years , the Sahara is crossed by more or less legal trade flows from at least the Roman Empire , from sub-Saharan Africa to Libya , then to Italy and Europe . Clans , tribes , and networks of the Tunisia-Libya coast , secularly poor , often have no other choice than to engage in smuggling ( goods and individuals ): they are the “ sons of the frontiers ” who have the “ knowledge to move ” from their homes to the smugglers of Egypt .
Thus was constituted , and grew up at the same time as the Libyan chaos , a cross-border zone of violent lawlessness , observing tribal norms — all the more so since the state ( whatever it is ) is absent and those who live there have always been perfectly forgotten by the system , that of Tunis as well as that of Tripoli . In the region of Ben Gardane-Ras Jedir , the center of cross-border trade thus represents more than 20 percent of the jobs of the active population .
The whole border area of Tunisia-Libya is a tormented quasi-desert that can only be crossed , along difficult tracks , with a good knowledge of the terrain and powerful 4x4s . The posts of the Tunisian Border Police and the National Guard are far away and the area is easily crossed for those who know the terrain .
71