Navigate to News section

Israeli Navy Intercepts Rockets Heading to Gaza

Syrian-made rockets reportedly flown to Iran then shipped to Gaza

by
Hannah Dreyfus
March 06, 2014
Israeli's Brigadier General Yaron Levi, the Navy's intelligence chief, gives a press conference at the Defence Ministery in Tel Aviv, on March 5, 2014. (JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images)
Israeli's Brigadier General Yaron Levi, the Navy's intelligence chief, gives a press conference at the Defence Ministery in Tel Aviv, on March 5, 2014. (JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images)

The Israeli Navy intercepted a ship off the coast of Africa filled with rockets and reportedly headed for Gaza, the Wall Street Journal reports. Israel military officials say the rockets were made in Syria, flown to Iran, and then sent towards their final destination in Gaza.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is currently visiting the U.S. to encourage Washington to tighten economic sanctions against Iran, called the interception “a perfect mission.”

“At a time when it is talking to the major powers, Iran smiles and says all sorts of nice things. The same Iran is sending deadly weapons to terrorist organizations,” Netanyahu told the Journal. “This is the true Iran and this state cannot possess nuclear weapons.”

U.S. officials said the shipment could be a serious violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions that bar Tehran from exporting weapons. A U.N. sanctions committee will study the incident and report to the Security Council.

The M-302 rockets found onboard the ship have a 125-mile range and would have reportedly given Hamas militants the ability to reach major Israeli cities.

Hannah Dreyfus is an editorial intern at Tablet.