London (Union)
The British Navy announced that it had confiscated, with the assistance of the US Navy, anti-tank missiles and components used in the manufacture of ballistic missiles from a boat in the Gulf waters during an attempt to smuggle them.
The boat was pursued, arrested and weapons confiscated on February 23, while the smugglers, whose fate or nationalities were not clear, were trying to advance at night on a sea route usually used to smuggle weapons to the terrorist “Houthi” militia in Yemen.
And the British Navy revealed that the ship “HMS Lancaster” seized the weapons “while conducting a routine security patrol,” after “a US surveillance and reconnaissance platform discovered a suspected smuggling vessel that was traveling at high speed in international waters at night.”
The ship was tracked by helicopter. The smugglers initially ignored the warnings and “attempted to flee, but were caught before they could do so,” according to the British statement, which did not disclose their fate or nationalities.
The weapons seized include anti-tank guided missiles and components for medium-range ballistic missiles, according to the British Navy.
For its part, the US Navy said, in a statement, that it provided intelligence support in the field of surveillance to the British Navy, noting that the boat was on a route historically used to illegally smuggle weapons to the “Houthis”.
And she added that in the past three months, seven pursuit operations by the US Navy and allied forces led to the seizure of more than 5,000 weapons, 1.6 million rounds of ammunition, 7,000 missile components, and narcotics with a market value of about $80 million.
“We will continue to work with our partners in pursuing any destabilizing activity that threatens regional maritime security and stability,” said Vice Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of the US Naval Forces Central Command, the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain and the Combined Maritime Forces.
This operation followed two previous operations during which the British Royal Navy seized weapons in the region early last year.
Over the past months, Western armies at sea have regularly raided boats and ships trying to smuggle weapons to the terrorist “Houthi” militia in Yemen.
Last month, the US army announced the seizure of a boat loaded with weapons and ammunition, before it reached the “Houthi” militia.
In a statement, the US Central Command confirmed that more than 3,000 assault rifles, 578,000 rounds of ammunition and 23 anti-tank guided missiles were found in the operation that took place on January 15.
On the sixth of last January, US forces intercepted a fishing boat carrying more than 2,100 assault rifles, believed to be destined for the “Houthis”.
A month earlier, the US forces also confiscated a vehicle loaded with tons of ammunition, chemicals, fuses and missile thrusters, which are also believed to be destined for the “Houthis”.
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