US Navy seizes arms shipment in Arabian Sea amid Yemen war
The U.S. Navy says it has seized an arms shipment hidden aboard a vessel in the Arabian Sea
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The U.S. Navy announced Sunday it seized an arms shipment hidden aboard a vessel in the Arabian Sea the latest such interdiction by sailors amid the long-running war in Yemen
The guided-missile cruiser USS Monterey discovered the weapons aboard what the Navy described as a stateless dhow, a traditional Mideast sailing ship, in an operation that began Thursday in the northern reaches of the Arabian Sea.
The weapons seized included Chinese-made, Kalashnikov-style assault rifles, sniper rifles, heavy machine guns and rocket-propelled grenade launchers.
The Navy did not identify where it believed the shipment originated.
However, the assortment of arms aboard the dhows mirrored other shipments interdicted by the U.S. and allied forces in the region that later were described to be heading to Yemen, where Iranian-backed Houthi rebels have been battling a Saudi-led military coalition for control of the country since 2015.
Yemen is awash with small arms that have been smuggled into poorly controlled ports over years of conflict.