JERUSALEM-
The Israeli navy seized a ship in the Red Sea on Wednesday that was carrying dozens of advanced Iranian-supplied rockets made in Syria and intended for Palestinian guerrillas in the Gaza Strip, the military said.
The announcement came as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was in the United States to press his case for tougher international action against Iran over its disputed nuclear programme and support for Islamist guerrilla groups.
The Panamanian-flagged cargo vessel Klos C was boarded in international waters without resistance from its 17-strong crew in a “complex, covert operation”, military spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Peter Lerner told reporters.
Lerner said dozens of M302 rockets were found aboard the Klos C, a weapon that could have struck deep into Israel from Gaza and would have significantly enhanced the firepower of the Palestinian enclave’s Hamas rulers and other armed factions.
“The M302 in its most advanced model can strike over 100 miles, and if they would have reached Gaza, ultimately that would have meant millions of Israelis under threat,” he said.
Hamas dismissed the Israeli announcement as a “silly joke”.
“This is a new Israeli lie aimed to justify and prolong the blockade of Gaza,” said Taher Al-Nono, adviser to the Hamas prime minister, Ismail Haniyeh.
There was no immediate comment from Syria, but Iran denied the accusations.
“This allegation is not true and in principle the message or movement of a ship carrying weapons from Iran to Gaza is not true,” said Amir Abdollahian, Deputy Foreign Ministry for Arab and African Affairs, according to the state news agency IRNA.
“The allegation is merely based on repetitious and baseless fabrications of the Zionist media.