Iran Implicated In Funneling Weapons To Yemen's Rebels

Yemen Seizes Sailboat Filled With Weapons, And U.S. Points To Iran -- New York Times

WASHINGTON — The authorities in Yemen have seized a boat in their territorial waters filled with a large quantity of explosives, weapons and money, according to American officials briefed on the interdiction. The officials said Monday that there were indications that Iran was smuggling the military contraband to insurgents inside Yemen, although they declined to provide details.

Yemeni security forces halted and searched the sailboat, a 130-foot dhow, last Tuesday and found the weapons in three large cargo rooms in the hold, according to reports on the mission reaching Washington. There was American support for the interdiction, officials said.

The government of Yemen confirmed the seizure Monday in an official statement. The captured weapons included surface-to-air missiles used to shoot down civilian and military aircraft, C4 military-grade explosives, 122-millimeter shells, rocket-propelled grenades and bomb-making equipment, including electronic circuits, remote triggers and other hand-held explosives, the statement said.

Read more ....

Update: Large arms shipment intercepted off Yemen, Iran eyed as source -- Reuters

My Comment: The surface to air missiles should raise alarm bells throughout the region.