The Jerusalem Post  |  March 13, 2011

Navy intercepts ship with Iranian arms bound for Hamas
Cargo vessel flying Liberian flag found with Chinese-made anti-ship missiles, as well as instruction manuals in Farsi.

By Yaakov Katz

IDF Photo


IDF Photo

IDF Photo

The Israel Navy seized a cargo vessel early Tuesday morning in the Mediterranean Sea that was carrying advanced weaponry, including anti-ship missiles that could alter the balance of power in the region.

Israel believes the weaponry originated in Iran and was destined for Hamas and other terrorist groups in the Gaza Strip.

In an operation called “Iron Law,” Israeli navy missile boats approached the Victoria cargo ship late Monday night as it passed some 320 km. off Israel’s coast. One of the vessels reached the captain on the radio and asked for permission to board.

Once he gave permission and began lowering a ladder, a number of speedboats carrying several teams of commandos from Flotilla 13 – known as the Shayetet – closed in.

The commandos did not encounter resistance when boarding the ship and were given the cargo certificates indicating that 39 containers had been loaded in the Syrian port of Latakia.

Two weeks earlier, a pair of Iranian warships had docked at the same port – possibly carrying weapons. Four of the containers, found with heavy locks, were slated to be unloaded in the port of Alexandria in Egypt.

The ship left Latakia and sailed to the port of Mersin in Turkey – likely a ploy meant to deflect attention from the ship and its cargo. The IDF stressed that it believed that neither Egypt nor Turkey was involved in the arms shipment.

According to the certificates, the containers were supposed to be carrying cotton and lentils, but when the commandos pulled out the first row of sacks they found crates of mortar shells and advanced anti-ship missiles.

The total shipment was estimated to weigh about 50 tons – similar to the cache discovered aboard the Karine A arms ship stopped by the navy in 2002.

The deputy commander of the navy, V.- Adm. Rani Ben-Yehuda, said the commandos had found two C-704 anti-ship missiles inside one of the... more here.