The British Navy seized an arsenal of Iranian weapons of war in the Gulf of Oman

There british royal navy He said on Thursday he seized a shipment of Iranian weapons, including anti-tank guided missiles, on February 23 from a smuggling ship in international waters in the Gulf of Oman.

Britain said the ship had been detected travel in southern iran at high speed during the hours of darkness for a US intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance drone., and was also followed by a British helicopter.

When located by the Navy, the vessel first attempted to sail into Iranian territorial waters, but was stopped by a security team. royal navies, who then boarded the small craft and recovered the suspicious packages, according to the UK Ministry of Defence.

“This seizure by the HMS Lancaster and the permanent presence of the Royal Navy in the Gulf region support our commitment to uphold international law and to counter activities that threaten peace and security around the world,” the UK Defense Secretary said in a statement. a statement. Ben Wallace.

Initial inspection suggested that the packages included Iranian anti-tank guided missiles Dehlavieh and components of medium range ballistic missiles Britain said, adding that it had notified the United Nations of the seizure.

“Coordinated efforts between the maritime forces of UNITED STATES and the United Kingdom led the Royal Navy frigate HMS Lancaster (F229) to seize anti-tank guided missiles and missile components from a small ship from Iran,” said the US 5th Fleet, stationed at Brahein.

It is seventh operation against illegal weapons or drugs carried out in the last three months in the Gulf of Omansaid the vice admiral Brad CooperCommander of United States Naval Forces Central Command, United States 5th Fleet and Combined Maritime Forces.

In this period of time, they seized more than 5,000 weapons1.6 million rounds, 7,000 proximity fuzes, 2,100 kilograms of propellant used to launch rocket-propelled grenades, 30 anti-tank guided missiles, medium-range ballistic missile components and illegal drugs worth $80 million dollars, according to the Fifth Fleet.

This interception occurs throughout a route historically used for illicit arms trafficking al yemen.

In the YemenTHE Houthi Shia rebelssupported by Tehranbegan a civil conflict against the forces of the internationally recognized government in 2014, and the following year it escalated due to the intervention of the military coalition led by Saudi Arabia.

From 2014the conflict in Yemen has left hundreds of thousands of dead and plunged the poorest country on the Arabian Peninsula into one of the worst humanitarian crises from everyone.

The fighting has ceased since April 2022, thanks to a UN-brokered truce for six months. This agreement expired last October and the two parties failed to reach an agreement.

(With information from Reuters, AFP and EFE)

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