Publication Type:
- International Enforcement Actions
Mentioned Suspect Entities & Suppliers:
U.S. troops boarded the German-owned freighter "Hansa India" in the Gulf of Suez in early October and discovered eight containers of ammunition and parts suitable for Kalashnikov rifles. The containers were secured when the ship arrived in Malta. The arms were found in barrels marked "Sazeman Sanaye Defa," the Farsi name for the Defense Industries Organization (DIO), an entity designated under U.N. Security Council resolution 1737 for its involvement in Iran's nuclear program. The ship's manifest showed that the cargo was being transferred from Iran to Syria in violation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1747, which bars Iran from exporting arms. The "Hansa India" is registered to the Hamburg-based shipping company Leonhardt & Blumberg, though it has been under charter to the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) for years. A notice issued by the Security Council committee charged with overseeing sanctions implementation called on countries to exercise "extreme vigilance" over IRISL activities, including by "subjecting its cargo to enhanced scrutiny."
Footnotes:
[1] "German Ship Transporting Arms For Iran," Spiegel Online, October 12, 2009.
[2] "Implementation Assistance Notice #2: Hansa India," U.N. Security Council, January 20, 2010.
[3] "Briefing by the Chairman of the Security Council Committee Established Pursuant to Resolution 1737 (2006)," U.N. Security Council, March 4, 2010.