France, May 11 -- Jihadist groups in the Sahel region are arming themselves largely through looting their countries' own military stockpiles, new research reveals, debunking theories that jihadists are being supplied by foreign weapons pipelines such as France.

Thelatest report by Conflict Armament Research(CAR)found that Salafi jihadist groups had no unique weapon supply sources and rely on local, predatory acquisition methods just like other regional armed actors.

At least 20 percent of the weapons used by Salafi jihadist groups in the Sahel had been seized from regular armies of eight North and West African countries, researchers found.

The weapons were seized during attacks on national forces, particularly in Mali, Niger, and Burki...