Iran News: U.S. Sends Confiscated Arms and Ammunition from IRGC to Ukraine
Written by
Shahriar Kia
The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that the U.S. government has transferred confiscated arms and ammunition from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to Ukraine to aid the country in defending itself against Russian aggression.
The IRGC had previously intended to supply these weapons and ammunition to Houthi rebels in Yemen, but the shipments were intercepted by U.S. military personnel stationed in the region.
According to CENTCOM’s statement on Tuesday, April 9, the transferred weapons included 5,000 Kalashnikov rifles, rifles for snipers, RPGs, and over 500,000 rounds of ammunition. These items were seized from four different ships that were attempting to transport them to Yemen.
The confiscation and subsequent transfer occurred between May 22, 2021, and February 15, 2023.
The U.S. government, which had obtained ownership of these confiscated items against the IRGC through a decree from the Ministry of Justice on December 1, 2023, provided them to Ukraine on April 4 of this year.
In its statement, CENTCOM deemed the IRGC’s actions in smuggling weapons to Yemen as a violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2216, adopted in 2015, which prohibits destabilizing activities in Yemen, such as the transfer of weapons to the country.
U.S. Government Transfers Captured Weapons
On Apr. 4, 2024, the U.S. government transferred over 5,000 AK-47s, machine guns, sniper rifles, RPG-7s and over 500,000 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition to the Ukrainian armed forces. This constitutes enough materiel to equip one UKR BDE… pic.twitter.com/Ydecq6OFAo
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) April 9, 2024
Furthermore, CENTCOM stated that Washington is committed to countering Iran’s support for armed groups in the Middle East and will utilize all legal means, including U.S. and UN sanctions, to address Iran’s actions that pose a threat to regional and international security.
The U.S. has previously supported Ukraine by providing approximately 1.1 million rounds of ammunition seized from the IRGC by the U.S. Navy in October last year.
Since the start of the Middle East conflict, Tehran-backed proxies have endangered maritime security in the region by attacking international ships in the Red Sea, the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, and the Gulf of Aden.
CENTCOM also announced on April 8 that its forces successfully thwarted threats posed by Iranian-backed Houthi terrorists in Yemen. Engaging between approximately 12:15 p.m. and 2:40 p.m. (Sanaa time), USCENTCOM destroyed an air defense system, a ground control station, and an unmanned aerial system launched by Houthi insurgents over the Red Sea. No injuries or damage were reported by U.S., coalition, or commercial ships.
Additionally, on April 7 around 8:00 a.m. (Sanaa time), a Houthi-launched anti-ship ballistic missile targeted a coalition ship escorting M/V Hope Island, a cargo vessel flagged in the Marshall Islands, owned by the United Kingdom, and operated by Italy.
Iran News: U.S. Sends Confiscated Arms and Ammunition from IRGC to Ukraine