ABU DHABI — A private aircraft landed at a UAE airport after its operators submitted forged documents listing the cargo as “Humanitarian Aid/Medical” consigned to Sudan’s Federal Ministry of Health. What it was actually carrying, investigators would later establish, was Goryunov ammunition — the opening move in a multi-million-dollar arms trafficking operation that UAE security authorities dismantled before it could go any further.
The case concluded this week with UAE Attorney General Counsellor Dr. Hamad Saif Al Shamsi ordering 13 individuals and six UAE-registered companies referred to the Abu Dhabi Federal Court of Appeal (State Security Court) on charges of illicit trafficking in military materiel, forgery and use of official documents, and money laundering.
HOW THE SCHEME WAS CAUGHT
On April 30, 2025, UAE security authorities intercepted an attempt to illegally transit weapons and military materiel to the Port Sudan Authority. A year-long investigation by the Public Prosecution followed, building a case file that includes seized financial records, certified bank transfers, official correspondence, recorded phone calls, and confessions from several of the defendants.
Among the evidence was an audio recording featuring Salah Abdallah Mohammed Saleh — known as Salah Gosh, the former Director of Sudan’s National Intelligence Service — pressing a contact to move the delayed aircraft immediately. “Tell them, to fly it tonight, any way they can fly it,” he is heard saying, adding that those waiting for the shipment would not accept further delays.
Investigators confirmed that Gosh oversaw the planning and execution of the arms deals through the UAE. His share of the profit from the transactions was found in the possession of co-defendant Khalid Yousef Mukhtar Yousef, identified as his former office director, and was seized at the time of arrest.
TWO DEALS, ONE NETWORK
The operation was carried out through two interrelated transactions involving prior planning and the use of commercial and financial fronts. In the first transaction, concluded outside the UAE, an agreement was reached to supply military materiel including Kalashnikov rifles, machine guns, and grenades, with a declared value of $13 million. The second transaction was executed within the UAE using more than $2 million from the proceeds of the first deal to procure an additional ammunition shipment.
The declared value of the first deal exceeded the actual value by $3 million, with the difference distributed as illicit commissions among network members through licensed UAE companies and bank accounts under fictitious commercial cover.
Investigators seized the underlying contract for the second deal, signed between defendant Rashed Omar — acting through his company Aboudof — and defendant Abdullah Khalafallah, operating through Portex Trade Limited in partnership with Gosh. The contract, now part of the official court record, details supply terms, delivery conditions and the agreed value.
Investigations confirmed that the illegal deals were carried out at the direct request of the Sudanese Armed Forces’ Armament Committee, with the six companies used as front entities to facilitate and conceal the transactions.
Investigators further established that the defendants had planned six additional transactions to smuggle five million more rounds of Goryunov ammunition. The interception of the first shipment stopped all of them.
THE DEFENDANTS
The 13 individuals referred to trial are: Rashed Omar Abdul Qader Ali; Mohammed Al Fath Mohammed Beik; Salah Abdallah Mohammed Saleh (Salah Gosh); Abdullah Khalafallah; Ahmed Rabie Sayed Ahmed Mohammed, identified as the cell’s principal organizer; Yasser Abdulrahman Hassan Al Atta, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces; Othman Mohammed Al Zubair Mohammed; Maher Abduljalil Mohammed Abduljalil; Khaled Yousef Mukhtar Yousef; Ahmed Khalafallah Abdullah Ahmed; Mubarak Ali Al Sheikh Mohammed; Othman Bakr Ali Karrar; and Musab Awad Al Karim Hassan Mohammed. The six companies are: Rashed Omar Brokerage Company; Portex Trade Limited; Wardat Al Masarra Trading Company; Sudamina Company; Yellow Sand Trading Company; and Apollara Electronics Trading Company.
Some defendants have been arrested inside the UAE and are facing proceedings before the court, while others remain outside the country.
BACKGROUND ON KEY FIGURES
Gosh is a former Sudanese intelligence chief and one of the most influential security figures in Sudan’s modern political history. He served for years as the powerful head of Sudan’s National Intelligence and Security Service under long-time ruler Omar Al Bashir. In 2023, he was targeted by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control for his role in “undermining the peace, security and stability of Sudan.” According to the Treasury Department, Gosh had publicly advocated for the Sudanese Armed Forces to overthrow Sudan’s civilian government, saying he was prepared to provide thousands of trained extremist fighters to support the effort.
In November 2025, the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement acknowledging that investigators had wrapped up a probe into the foiled smuggling attempt and that suspects were being referred to the judiciary.
The UAE Public Prosecution stressed that the country will not tolerate any attempt to exploit its territory, institutions, or financial system for unlawful purposes, affirming that the sovereignty and security of the state are a red line and that the law will be applied with full firmness to all those involved.