Iran reportedly smuggling arms to Hezbollah via Syria
Beirut - Weapons smuggled from Iran through Syria to Lebanon have rearmed Hezbollah, Time magazine reported Friday.
Western diplomats in Beirut say Hezbollah has received 20,000 short-range missiles, bringing its armaments back to around their level before last summer's war with Israel. Israeli military officials say Hezbollah has about half the arms that were stockpiled when the war began.
"The Iranian pipeline through Syria was already working during the war," one diplomat told Time.
A Saudi official said the Iranians have been operating out of a military base outside of Damascus that serves as a transshipment point for arms. Arms convoys reportedly use mountain passes into Lebanon to bypass forces stationed on the border.
The Saudis are concerned about the spread of Iranian influence, Time said.
Saudi adviser Nawaf Obaid said that during a meeting between Saudi King Abdullah and US VP Dick Cheney, the king told his guest that the Saudi's will not allow the Iranians and Syrians through their ally in Lebanon , Hezbollah to take over the Lebanese government.
The middle eastern countries are becoming extremely nervous about the increasing of Iranian influence in the region.
Picture: Saudi Crown Prince Sultan, seated, right, meets with U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney, left, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Saturday, Nov. 25, 2006
Source: UPI, Al Seyassah
Western diplomats in Beirut say Hezbollah has received 20,000 short-range missiles, bringing its armaments back to around their level before last summer's war with Israel. Israeli military officials say Hezbollah has about half the arms that were stockpiled when the war began.
"The Iranian pipeline through Syria was already working during the war," one diplomat told Time.
A Saudi official said the Iranians have been operating out of a military base outside of Damascus that serves as a transshipment point for arms. Arms convoys reportedly use mountain passes into Lebanon to bypass forces stationed on the border.
The Saudis are concerned about the spread of Iranian influence, Time said.
Saudi adviser Nawaf Obaid said that during a meeting between Saudi King Abdullah and US VP Dick Cheney, the king told his guest that the Saudi's will not allow the Iranians and Syrians through their ally in Lebanon , Hezbollah to take over the Lebanese government.
The middle eastern countries are becoming extremely nervous about the increasing of Iranian influence in the region.
Picture: Saudi Crown Prince Sultan, seated, right, meets with U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney, left, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Saturday, Nov. 25, 2006
Source: UPI, Al Seyassah
posted by Marko at 11/26/2006 08:59:00 AM
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