US navy intercepts arms smuggling boat off Yemen

The United States intercepted hundreds of small arms from an “unflagged” boat in the Gulf of Aden, Middle East Eye reported today.

A traditional dhow boat was carrying the arms, including AK-47s used for guerrilla combat. The crew of the US destroyer navy ship Jason Dunham intercepted the boats, confiscating the arms according, to a US official speaking on the condition of anonymity.

The official added that operations were conducted in the past, including the seizure of drugs from vessels in the Gulf of Aden.

The Gulf of Aden is one of the world’s busiest shipping routes connecting Europe to Asia and the Middle East, with Yemen to the north, Somalia to the south and the Arabian Sea to the east.

In Yemen, the US-backed Saudi-led coalition has been blaming Iran for smuggling arms to the Houthi group since late 2014.

US: We may reduce support for Saudi if civilian deaths rise in Yemen

The conflict in Yemen escalated in 2015 when Saudi Arabia and its Sunni-Arab allies launched a massive air campaign aimed at rolling back Houthi gains. The group had taken control of the capital, Sanaa, and large swathes of the country forcing the internationally backed government into exile.

In early August, a UN panel of Yemen experts investigated ten pieces of debris from ten missiles in Saudi Arabia and found markings that suggested Iranian origin. The experts are also investigating claims that Iran may have supplied the Houthis with monthly donations valued at $30 million, although Tehran has categorically denied providing any military or financial support.

Arms monitor group Conflict Armament Research (CAR) says it has evidence that Houthi military equipment used in Yemen are made in Iran. In late 2016, American warships intercepted three dhow boats transferring a significant quantity of Iranian made weapons to Somalia and Yemen.

US ‘still backs’ Saudi-UAE fight in Yemen