US sends ammunition seized from Iran to Ukraine

Iran has emerged as a key arms supplier to Russia in the conflict

About 1.1 million 7.62mm rounds, which are widely used in automatic rifles, were sent for use by the Ukrainian armed forces. Reuters

The US has transferred to Ukraine's armed forces more than one million Iranian-made bullets seized while en route to Yemen last year, the American military's Central Command said on Wednesday.

Centcom said the bullets had been confiscated from a stateless dhow called the Marwan in December.

“The munitions were being transferred from the [Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps] to the Houthis in Yemen in violation of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2216,” Centcom said in a statement.

About 1.1 million 7.62mm rounds, which are widely used in automatic rifles, were sent for use by the Ukrainian armed forces in their fight against Russia's invasion.

“The US is committed to working with our allies and partners to counter the flow of Iranian lethal aid in the region by all lawful means,” Centcom said.

In January, the US Navy seized 2,116 rifles destined for Yemen from a fishing boat in the Gulf of Oman.

Iran has emerged as a key arms supplier in the Ukraine war, aiding Russia in the grinding conflict.

Moscow has received hundreds of Iranian Shahed-136 one-way attack drones – sometimes called kamikaze drones and which Russia calls Geran-2 – for use in its war in Ukraine. Iran has also sent Russia its Mohajer drones for use in the conflict.

US Navy seizes assault rifles en route to Yemen – in pictures

Assault rifles seized by the US Navy in the Sea of Oman laid out on the deck of navy destroyer USS The Sullivans. All photos: US Naval Forces Central Command / US 5th Fleet

More than 2,000 rifles were found when servicemen boarded a dhow

The AK-47 rifles were being shipped from Iran to Yemen

The confiscated rifles laid out on the deck of the destroyer