Since 1979 Iran has remained under economic sanction, alleged for supporting rebel groups in Lebanon, Syria and Yemen. To further malign Iran, now stories of weapon confiscation by the US Navy.
According to a report from 2015 to May 2021, the United States and its allies have intercepted at least seven shipments of weapons allegedly originating from Iran and headed to Yemen. The vessels were either wooden boats or fishing vessels. Their cargoes varied in size and lethality. Some boats were carrying small arms, such as machine guns and AK-47 assault rifles. Others carried anti-tank and surface-to-air missiles or components for anti-ship and land attack cruise missiles.
The following is a rundown of seizures, beginning with the most recent:
2021
In May 2021, USS Monterey interdicted a dhow in the northern Arabian Sea with a large cache of weapons, including dozens of Russian anti-tank missiles, thousands of Chinese-made assault rifles, and hundreds of machine guns, sniper rifles and rocket-propelled grenades. The source and destination of the weapons were under investigation, the US Fifth Fleet based in Bahrain said in a statement. US naval and coast guard personnel removed the cargo from the dhow and questioned the crew before releasing them.
2020
On 28th June, US Navy and partner forces interdicted a boat off the coast of Yemen. The vessel was carrying 200 RPGs, more than 1,700 AK rifles, 21 surface-to-air and land-attack missiles, several anti-tank missiles, and other advanced weapons and missiles.
Earlier on 9th February, USS Normandy interdicted the Al Qanas, a dhow in the Arabian Sea manned by Yemeni nationals. The vessel was carrying 150 anti-tank missiles, three surface-to-air missiles, night vision scopes and drone components. US naval personnel interrogated the dhow’s crew before handing them over to the Yemeni Coast Guard.The Justice Department later connected the dhow to Qods Force. A UN panel of experts also concluded that the anti-tank missiles were most likely manufactured in the Islamic Republic of Iran.
2019
On 25th November, USS Forrest Sherman interdicted the Al Raheeb, a dhow crewed by Yemeni nationals in the northern Arabia Sea. The boat was carrying 21 anti-tank missiles, five surface-to-air missiles, components for land-attack and anti-ship cruise missiles, thermal optical sights, blasting caps and drone components, according to a Justice Department filing. The missiles were “the most sophisticated weapons seized by the US Navy to date during the Yemen conflict,” U.S. Special Representative for Iran Brian Hook said on 25th December 2019. The Justice Department later connected the Al Raheeb to the Qods Force. A UN panel of experts concluded that the Al Raheeb carried Iranian made anti-tank missiles.
2016
On 28th March, USS Sirocco interdicted a dhow in the Arabian Sea headed for Yemen. The vessel was carrying 1,500 AK-47s, 200 RPG launchers and 21 .50 caliber machine guns, aid US Navy in a statement. The weapons were taken into US custody, while the crew was permitted to depart. The U.S. Navy said the weapons originated from Iran and were likely bound for Houthi insurgents in Yemen.
Earlier on 20th March, FS Provence, a French destroyer, interdicted a dhow in the northern Indian Ocean. The dhow was carrying several hundred AK47 assault rifles, machine guns and anti-tank weapons, according to the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF), a US-led coalition of 34 nations that operates in the Rea Sea, Gulf of Aden and Gulf of Oman. The taskforce initially said that the weapons were destined for Somalia, but the US Navy later assessed that the weapons originated from Iran and were destined for Yemen.
On 28th February, HMAS Darwin, an Australian warship, interdicted an fishing vessel more than 170 miles off the coast of Oman. The crew searched the vessel and discovered 1,989 AK-47 assault rifles, 100 rocket propelled grenade launchers, 49 PKM general purpose machine guns, 39 PKM spare barrels and 20 60mm mortar tubes, the CMF reported. A CMF taskforce initially said that the fishing vessel was headed toward Somalia, but the US Navy later assessed that the weapons originated from Iran and destined for Yemen.
2015
On 30th September, the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen interdicted an Iranian fishing boat in the Arabian Sea about 150 miles off the coast of Oman. The vessel was carrying 18 anti-tank missiles, 54 anti-tank shells, 15 shell battery kits, four firing guidance systems and five binocular batteries destined to the Houthi militias in Yemen, the coalition reported.
