American newspaper: A coordinated Western effort to prevent Iranian weapons from reaching the Houthis
English - Saturday 18 February 2023 الساعة 04:32 pm
Translation, NewsYemen:
An American newspaper said that Western armies regularly raided boats trying to smuggle weapons from Iran to the Houthis in Yemen, and seized huge quantities of missiles, explosives, weapons and ammunition.
The American newspaper "Business Insider" quoted experts in the Middle East and Iran as saying that these raids are a coordinated effort aimed at putting pressure on Iran and thwarting its malicious plans in the region.
Over the past several months, US Central Command has uncovered a series of raids by US or partner forces on boats, often fishing vessels, traveling along routes historically used to illegally smuggle weapons from Iran to the Houthis, who are engaged in a civil war against Yemen's internationally recognized government.
US Central Command said this month that it supported "partner naval forces" during a January raid in the Gulf of Oman. The interception, carried out by French special forces, took place along the traditional smuggling routes between Iran and Yemen and seized more than 3,000 assault rifles, 578,000 rounds of ammunition and 23 advanced anti-tank guided missiles.
The US Central Command said the raid was one of four "illegal interceptions of shipping" over the past few months that resulted in the seizure of more than 5,000 weapons and 1.6 million rounds of ammunition before they reached Yemen. The United Nations currently has an embargo on arms going to the Houthis.
In previous raids, US forces captured thousands of AK-47 assault rifles and a "massive amount" of explosive material used to fuel ballistic missiles.
The British Navy also seized surface-to-air missiles and cruise missile engines coming from Iran.
The US Central Command said that in 2021, it prevented 9,000 illegal weapons from reaching the Houthis, which represents a 200 percent increase from the number of weapons seized in 2020.
But over the past few months, these naval raids have also coincided with major Western messages against Iran. Examples include recent military exercises between the United States and Israel, and pressure from the European Union to designate the Iranian Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist organization.
Vatanka added: It is because of Iran's progress towards the possible development of a nuclear weapon, there is an urgent need to put pressure on Iran in all areas. Options include imposing more sanctions and rolling back regional influence, such as curbing arms transfers.
Iran supports several regional proxies in addition to the Houthis in Yemen, such as the Lebanese Hezbollah, which the US State Department considers a foreign terrorist organization.
