New seizure of weapons for Yemen: over 2,000 Kalashnikovs aboard a dhow, stranded in the Gulf of Oman

New chapter in the war at sea between the United States and Iran over arms supplies to the Houthis. On January 6, forces from CENTCOM, America’s central command for military operations, intercepted and blocked a dhow in the Gulf of Oman carrying more than 2,000 Kalashnikov assault rifles. The boat, which set sail from the Islamic Republic and was bound for the Arab country, sailed on a route historically used for arms trafficking. In November, USS The Sullivans and USS Lewis B. Puller had made contact with a Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) patrol vessel, which had tried unsuccessfully to “blind” the two vessels at close range and Puller herself had intercepted a fishing vessel which illegally transported over 50 tons of munitions of various types, fuses and rocket propellants along a sea route from Iran to Yemen. A similar episode had occurred on 8 November. In that case, about 70 tons of ammonium perchlorate, a powerful oxidizer commonly used to produce fuel for rockets and missiles, were seized, also destined for the Houthis in Yemen.

The war at sea between the United States and Iran over illegal arms supplies to the Houthis intensifies

In the waters of the Gulf of Oman and the Strait of Hormuz there is now an open conflict between Iran and the United States. In fact, the first country continues to try to supply the Houthi in Yemen with weapons using the sea, as the skies are too controlled and full of “enemies”. The US, on the other hand, with the growing support of NATO, EU and national missions, is working to block trafficking and in recent months there has been an escalation of controls and seizures, which has created numerous problems for both Tehran and the Houthis. Not surprisingly, the Revolutionary Guards have repeatedly tried to hinder “hostile” naval activities.