IDF Naval Commandos intercepted the Iranian cargo ship, the "Francop", which was laden with roughly 500 tons of weapons hidden amongst civilian cargo. In Tehran, Syria's Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem dismissed Israeli allegations the ship carried arms. "Unfortunately, some pirates sometimes take action in the name of inspection and prevent the sailing of commercial ships," he was quoted as saying by the state IRNA news agency during a visit Wednesday. "This ship was carrying goods from Syria heading to Iran and was not carrying weapons making materials."
The 36 weapons containers were sent from Iran and were en-route to the Hezbollah terrorist organization in Lebanon. This shipment contained enough weaponry to keep the Hezbollah terrorists supplied for a full month of fighting.
From the IDF Spokesman:
"After being boarded, the ship was then "requested" to make way to the Israeli Naval Port of Ashdod for a complete inspection and inventory of the illegal weapons cargo.
The naval commando force boarded the vessel and conducted an initial search. The search was conducted in accordance with the usual search protocols as dictated by International Law.
Following the initial search and after it became clear that the vessel was carrying weapons, the vessel was directed by the Israel Navy to dock at the Israeli Ashdod Naval base for additional searches and a detailed inspection of the hull’s cargo. It should be emphasized that the captain of the ship agreed to the search. The Israel Navy conducted all activity without any force.
The weapons found onboard the ship originate from Iran, and were intended for the Hezbollah terror organization, for use against the State of Israel and its citizens. The weapons uncovered at sea last night constitute a harsh violation of UN Security Council Resolutions 1747 and 1701 that strictly forbid Iran from exporting or trading any form of weapons."
"The overnight operation was authorized by the Prime Minister and the Minister of Defense of the State of Israel. Commander of the Israel Navy, Maj. Gen. Eliezer Marom, commanded the operation from a forward command cell. The IDF Chief of the General Staff authorized the operation, after the confirmation of intelligence information gathered by the IDF."
And of course the Iranians are as glib as ever:
See the pictures and video here
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05 November 2009
The Long Arm of IDF Naval Commandos
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3 comments:
Talk about backwards political double-speak. A ship coming FROM Iran, is carrying cargo TO Iran?
Methinks I smell a VERY LARGE rat in the bilge.
Now the $64,000 question: What will Israel DO with these weapons?
I see four options (but there may be more), three of them more likely then the fourth:
1) Confiscate them and use them against Hezbollah.
2) Allow them to be delivered to Hezbollah (not likely).
3) Return them to Iran (again, not voluntarily likely, but Israel may be forced into it by international law).
4) Throw them overboard into deep water, rendering them useless & unrecoverable (oops! So sad, too bad).
It will be interesting to see "what happens next." My bets are on #1 or #4.
B Woodman
III-per
Caution will be required in the future. I can imagine the Iranians putting a nuke aboard a ship and detonating it after it reaches an Israeli port. Screen for one while at sea.
The "Francop" incident made the national news here in the states although the coverage was light. I am aware that Iran is a big supplier of weapons to Hezbollah in Lebanon. Was glad to see the seizure--you guys are doing a great job. We just had multiple shootings at Fort Hood in Texas--the largest military base in the world. The news is still breaking, and it appears there is more than one shooter. Thanks for the recent vist to Guns and Bikinis and for adding it to your blogroll. I generally link back when I borrow an image, but must admit sometimes in a rush I don't. I will do better in the future. I have a total of 17 blogs and they keep me hopping. Yours is a great blog. I don't know if you are a political conservative or a liberal, I have several politically conservative blogs and link to those of like mind. Check out my main blog and if you like the theme let me know by dropping a comment and I will link back to you. The URL is http://totus-blog.blogspot.com
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