Somalia has imposed a "total ban" on the "trade, smuggling, and any other business related to weapons and ammunitions within the country by non-state actors."
This comes after smuggled weapons were intercepted in the central region of Galmudug on Monday.
Somalia said the cache of weapons had been smuggled by "unscrupulous arms dealers" from a town on the country's border with Ethiopia.
During confiscation, armed militants attacked Somali security officers and made away with an unknown number of firearms.
National Security Council emergency meeting
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud convened the National Security Council's emergency meeting on Thursday to chart the way forward after the weapons were illegally ferried into the country and some of them stolen.
"The Ministry of Internal Security in collaboration with the other security agencies was instructed to submit a detailed report and recommendations within two weeks concerning the (Galmudug) incident, identifying those responsible, and proposing strict measures to prevent similar incidents in the future," Somali Presidency said in a statement on Thursday.
Following the ban on arms trade by non-state entities, the National Security Council "agreed to urgently present the Weapons Procurement Policy to the Council of Ministers of the Federal Government of Somalia."
The National Security Council further directed the Ministry of Justice and law enforcement authorities to "swiftly bring all the perpetrators involved in these illegal activities to justice."
Arms embargo
President Mohamud said Somalia successfully petitioned the UN Security Council to lift a three-decade arms embargo on the country after Somalia "effectively implemented the management of military supplies and arms for the Somali National Security Forces."
The president warned that poor management of arms flow could roll back the gains the country has made over the years.
On Tuesday, Somalia said illegal arms trade had significantly contributed to insecurity in the country, where terrorist group al-Shabaab poses a major security threat.
"We are resolute in our mission to reclaim the stolen weapons and we'll impose severe punitive measures on those complicit in this brazen violence," Somalia said after the incident in Galmudug on Monday.
Al-Shabaab terror threat
Al-Shabaab terrorist group, which has staged attacks in Somalia and the neighbouring nations over the years, has killed thousands of people over that period.
The group's potency has however reduced of late as Somali and regional security forces continue to engage in a large-scale security operation against the terrorists.
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