A large seizure of Iranian weapons intended for Yemen made in January by unidentified "Western allies" was revealed on Wednesday, February 1, by the Pentagon.
The seizure would have been carried out by soldiers of the French special forces, assures the Wall Street Journal.
More than 3,000 assault rifles, 578,000 bullets and 23 anti-tank guided missiles were recovered during the January 15 operation in the Gulf of Oman, the US Army's central command said in a statement.
Arms trafficking
The central command, which oversees US military operations in the Middle East, said the United States had provided support for the operation, without identifying the allied country that made the seizure.
But the Wall Street Journal, citing informed sources, cited France.
The operation was carried out "along the maritime routes traditionally used for arms trafficking from Iran to Yemen", the statement said.
On Thursday, Tehran rejected the US accusations, saying they were "politically motivated" and aimed to "mislead" public opinion.
Charge
Countries that sold arms to states that "invaded" Yemen were "not in a position to blame others," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani said in a statement.
The United States is among the main arms suppliers to Saudi Arabia, the country at the head of a coalition which launched an operation in Yemen in 2015 to drive out the Houthi rebels supported by Iran, who had seized the capital Sanaa.
Yemen's ruling leaders, backed by the coalition, accuse the Islamic Republic of arming Houthi rebels, which Tehran denies.
On January 6, US forces intercepted a fishing boat carrying 2,116 AK-47 assault rifles, which Washington said were destined for the Houthi rebels.
With AFP
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