Pentagon official: Weapons discovered in Arabian Sea belong to Iran

A US Defense Department official announced that initial investigations indicate that the weapons shipment discovered on a ship "originated from Iran and was intended to equip the Houthis in Yemen."

The US Navy's Fifth Fleet announced in a statement on Saturday, May 8, that the USS Monterey cruiser had succeeded in discovering and seizing large quantities of weapons from a yacht that was sailing without a flag or nationality in the northern Arabian Sea.

According to the report, the seized weapons included Russian-made anti-tank guided missiles, Chinese-made weapons, sniper rifles, RPG-7s, and heavy machine guns.

An American official said that the weapons discovered were similar to those previously sent to the Houthis.

The Pentagon official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told The Associated Press that “this action is in violation of sanctions imposed by the United Nations.” The Associated Press report continued by saying that “the Islamic Republic’s mission to the United Nations did not respond to a request for comment.”

Following the seizure of the ship, a US Defense Department official announced on Sunday that, based on initial investigations, the ship "was sent from Iran with the aim of delivering weapons to the Houthis in Yemen."

The US Defense Department official, whose identity was not disclosed, added: "Based on the interrogation of the crew and the findings inside the ship, we have concluded that the ship was of Iranian origin."

The US Navy's Fifth Fleet has emphasized that "the vessel will remain in the custody of US forces until its identity, origin, and destination are determined." According to a US Navy statement, the ship's crew has been released after questioning.

In recent years, there have been numerous reports of ships carrying weapons being seized in the Sea of ​​Oman and the Arabian Sea, and each time the Islamic Republic of Iran has been accused of exporting weapons to Yemen.

In the latest case, on Friday, April 23, the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement denying Rostam Qasemi's statements about military aid and the presence of advisors in Yemen, calling them contrary to reality and the policies of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Source: DW