UN inspects weapons seized by US Navy

It is suspected the arms for Al Houthis, seized off the Yemen coast, originated in Iran

The huge pile of rusting AK47 assault rifles is tucked into a corner below the deck of the USS Jason Dunham, serving as a grim reminder of how hard it is to catch weapons smugglers believed to be trafficking arms into Yemen.

On Thursday, UN inspectors boarded the American guidedmissile destroyer, to examine the more than 2,500 guns the crew seized in late August and determine if suspicions are true that the weapons originated in Iran.

US officials have long accused Iran of smuggling arms across the waters to Yemen’s Al Houthi militia, which has held Yemen’s capital, Sana’a, since September 2014. But they have only managed to seize a handful of weapons caches in recent years, underscoring the difficulties in tracking down arms smugglers working the vast waters around Yemen.

Vice Admiral Scott Stearney, commander of the US 5th Fleet, wouldn’t tell reporters if he thought Iran was responsible for the shipment, but he said the UN inspectors were experts on illicit weapons from Iran, Yemen and Somalia.

The USS Jason Dunham on patrol in the region noticed large bags being transferred from a dhow about 112km off the coast of Yemen and into a smaller skiff. The Navy ship intercepted the skiff and, after talking to the crew on board, determined they were smuggling weapons. The rifles were wrapped in plastic, then wrapped in styrofoam and hidden in green burlap bags.

The Dunham’s commander said the crew on the dhow initially told them they were carrying flour and wheat, but there was none of either on board.

Navy Capt Adan Cruz, commodore of US Naval Forces Central Command, said it was likely the weapons were being shipped from Somalia to Yemen, but that’s still not proven. The UN inspectors, he said, will determine the guns’ origin and “see first-hand the weapons flowing into the region.