Israeli naval commandos have boarded a ship suspected of carrying Iranian-supplied rockets destined for Lebanon's Hezbullah group and taken the vessel to an Israeli port, the government said today.
Deputy Defence Minister Matan Vilnai told army radio that Katyusha rockets were found on the Antigua-flagged Francop, which the military said was intercepted overnight in the Mediterranean Sea, 100 miles from Israel. It was brought to Ashdod, south of Tel Aviv.
A Cyprus-based shipping source said the ship had been due to call in Lebanon.
"Stopping the Iranian weapons ship was an important achievement for the Israel Defence Forces and the state of Israel," President Shimon Peres said in a statement.
The 8,622-tonne ship was due to have arrived on November 1st at the Egyptian port of Damietta and was last seen on October 31st in the Mediterranean sea between Lebanon and Cyprus.
The vessel is owned by German shipping company Reederei Gerd Bartels, based near the port of Hamburg. Asked to comment, Mirko Bartels of the private shipping firm said: "We have nothing to say." An official with Cyprus-based United Feeder Services said it had acted as the time charterer and carrier for the Francop, tasked with loading and discharging the vessel.
"The vessel sailed from Damietta, and was bound for Limassol, Cyprus and then Lebanon, Turkey and back to Damietta," the official, who declined to be named, said.
"We are not allowed to open up containers to see what is inside," he said. "We do not have much information. We just know that the vessel was seized and was forced to go to Ashdod to check the cargo."
Military sources said naval commandos seized the 137-metre-long vessel in international waters.
Asked if the weaponry on the ship had been earmarked for Hezbullah, Mr Vilnai said: "Yes. It strengthens (the group) and improves its long-range firing capability into Israel." He did not give any quantities, saying the vessel was still being unloaded in Israel and voicing doubt as to whether its crew knew munitions were on aboard. Army Radio said anti-tank missiles were also found.
Iranian-backed Hezbullah launched more than 4,000 rockets into Israel during a 2006 war and Israeli officials have said the group has rearmed since the 34-day conflict.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement that weapons discovered on the vessel could have been used to attack Israeli cities.
But in public comments on the incident, Israeli leaders gave no hint they were contemplating military action against Hezbullah in response to the alleged weapons smuggling attempt. The Israeli-Lebanese frontier has been largely quiet since 2006.
The largest weapons-smuggling ship intercepted by the Israeli navy was the Karine-A, a freighter boarded in 2002 while carrying tons of weapons that Israel said Iran had sent to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Reuters