US transfers ammunition seized from Iran's IRGC to Ukraine

By Mahmoud Barakat

ANKARA (AA) – The United States has transferred around 1.1 million bullets seized from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to Ukraine, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Wednesday.

“The US government transferred approximately 1.1 million 7.62mm rounds to the Ukrainian armed forces,” CENTCOM said in a statement.

CENTCOM noted that its naval forces seized the ammunition on Dec. 9, 2022 from “the transiting stateless dhow MARWAN 1” while en route to Yemen’s Houthi rebel group.

Iran’s weapon transfer to the Houthi group is prohibited under UN Security Council Resolution 2216.

Issued in 2015, Resolution 2216 condemned “any attempt by the Houthis to take actions that are exclusively within the authority of the legitimate Government of Yemen.”

There was no Iranian comment on the report.

Yemen has been engulfed by violence and instability since 2014, when the Iranian-aligned Houthi rebels captured much of the country, including the capital Sanaa, prompting Arab states to militarily intervene.