The U.K. announced Thursday it had seized "sophisticated" Iranian missiles from smugglers in the Gulf of Oman earlier this year in what officials have pointed to as proof Tehran is supporting Houthi rebels in Yemen.
With assistance provided by the U.S. Navy, the Royal Navy HMS Montrose completed two separate seizures from smugglers operating speed boats off the coast of Iran on Jan. 28 and Feb 25.
In direct violation of a 2015 arms embargo enforced by the UN Security Council, the smugglers were found to have been carrying "dozens of packages" containing surface-to-air missiles and engines for land-attack cruise missiles.
This is the first time a British Naval warship has interdicted a vessel carrying such sophisticated weapons from Iran," the British embassy in Washington, D.C. said in a statement.
On both occasions, a Wildcat helicopter launched from the HMS Montrose and scanning the area in a routine check found vessels speeding away from the Iranian coastline.
After pursuing the vessels with the air support of an MH-60 Seahawk helicopter from the U.S. Navy destroyer, the USS Gridley, British marines approached the vessels by rigid hulled inflatable boats (RHIB) before inspecting them.
"Dozens of packages containing advanced weaponry were discovered, confiscated and brought back to HMS Montrose," the embassy said, adding that 358 surface-to-air missiles and 351 land-attack cruise missiles were discovered.
The British embassy also noted that the land-attack cruise missile, which has a range of over 620 miles, is regularly used by Houthi rebels in strikes against Saudi Arabia.
The U.S. and the U.K. have said they are committed to working together to stop Iran’s illegal smuggling of weapons to Yemen, which is the site of one of the greatest humanitarian crises in the world.
The eight-year-long war has killed an estimated 377,000 people and displaced more than 4.3 million Yemenis internally.
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