Under new management: Captured guns and ammo bound for Houthis handed to Ukraine
A massive cache of weapons that was being sent to Houthi rebels in Yemen has ended up with a new owner – the Ukrainian armed forces.
The weapons and ammo were being shipped to the Houthis by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), but were seized from four vessels while they were in transit.
More than 5,000 AK assault rifles, sniper rifles and RPG-7s, and more than 500,000 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition were confiscated, and have now been given to the Ukrainian armed forces by the US government.
Enough weapons were seized to equip an entire Ukrainian brigade with small arms – weapons that can be used to help defend the country against the Russian invasion.
The US government obtained legal ownership of the weapons and ammunition last December through the Department of Justice's civil forfeiture claims against the IRGC.
They were seized by US Central Command (CentCom) and partner naval forces from four separate ships, which were not flagged from any particular country.
However, the munitions were being transferred from the IRGC to the Houthis in Yemen in violation of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2216.
CentCom said it was committed to working with its allies and partners to counter the flow of Iranian lethal aid in the region by all lawful means.
These include US and United Nations sanctions, and through interdictions.
It said: "Iran's support for armed groups threatens international and regional security, our forces, diplomatic personnel and citizens in the region, as well as those of our partners.
"We will continue to do whatever we can to shed light on and stop Iran's destabilising activities."
Iran uses an eclectic mix of weapons, with the AK being a good example. Its forces operate the Soviet-era AKM as well as various copies of the weapon, including its own KL-7.62 variant.
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