The US on Saturday accused Iran of trying to smuggle more than a million rounds of ammunition and rocket components to Yemen, after a major weapons bust at sea.
An American warship hauled 50 tonnes of weaponry from a fishing trawler on a key maritime smuggling route used by Tehran, US officials said.
“This significant interdiction clearly shows that Iran’s unlawful transfer of lethal aid and destabilising behaviour continues,” said Vice Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of US Naval Forces Central Command, based in Bahrain.
“US naval forces remain focused on deterring and disrupting dangerous and irresponsible maritime activity in the region.”
The seizure made by personnel from the USS Lewis B Puller is the US Fifth Fleet's second major illegal weapons haul in a month.
A search party that boarded during routine checks found more than a million rounds of 7.62mm ammunition, 25,000 rounds of 12.7mm ammunition, nearly 7,000 proximity fuses for rockets and over 2,100 kilograms of propellant used to launch rocket-propelled grenades.
Tehran has for years helped to train and arm the Houthi rebel group, which controls about one third of Yemen, including the capital Sanaa. The group has made repeated pushes to capture the oil-rich Marib district.
The Fifth Fleet intercepted a fishing vessel illegally shipping weapons from Iran to Yemen on November 8, when the US Coast Guard ship John Scheuerman and guided-missile destroyer USS The Sullivans intercepted a vessel in the Gulf of Oman.
A week-long search assisted by Navy explosive ordnance disposal technicians discovered more than 70 tonnes of ammonium perchlorate, a powerful oxidiser commonly used to make rocket and missile fuel as well as explosives.
US forces also found more than 100 tonnes of urea fertiliser, a chemical compound with agricultural applications that is also known for use as an explosive precursor.
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The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Anti-semitic attacks
The annual report by the Community Security Trust, which advises the Jewish community on security , warned on Thursday that anti-Semitic incidents in Britain had reached a record high.
It found there had been 2,255 anti-Semitic incidents reported in 2021, a rise of 34 per cent from the previous year.
The report detailed the convictions of a number of people for anti-Semitic crimes, including one man who was jailed for setting up a neo-Nazi group which had encouraged “the eradication of Jewish people” and another who had posted anti-Semitic homemade videos on social media.
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
How to increase your savings
- Have a plan for your savings.
- Decide on your emergency fund target and once that's achieved, assign your savings to another financial goal such as saving for a house or investing for retirement.
- Decide on a financial goal that is important to you and put your savings to work for you.
- It's important to have a purpose for your savings as it helps to keep you motivated to continue while also reducing the temptation to spend your savings.
- Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
Innotech Profile
Date started: 2013
Founder/CEO: Othman Al Mandhari
Based: Muscat, Oman
Sector: Additive manufacturing, 3D printing technologies
Size: 15 full-time employees
Stage: Seed stage and seeking Series A round of financing
Investors: Oman Technology Fund from 2017 to 2019, exited through an agreement with a new investor to secure new funding that it under negotiation right now.
