U.S. Says New Find Shows Iran Still Sends Arms to Iraq

Wall Street Journal ^ | April 25, 2008 | Yochi J. Dreazen

[freerepublic_or_die]

The U.S. military says it has found caches of newly made Iranian weapons in Iraq, leading senior officials to conclude Tehran is continuing to funnel armaments into Iraq despite its pledges to the contrary.

Officials in Washington and Baghdad said the purported Iranian mortars, rockets and explosives had date stamps indicating they were manufactured in the past two months. The U.S. plans to publicize the weapons caches in coming days. A pair of senior commanders said a presentation was tentatively planned for Monday.

The allegations, which couldn't be independently verified, mark a further hardening of U.S. rhetoric on Iran, which senior American officials now describe as the greatest long-term threat to Iraq.

This month, Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Iranian support for Shiite extremist groups had grown. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said for the first time that he believed Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad knew about the shipments.

Iran has long denied that its government knowingly funneled weapons into Iraq or trained Shiite militants there. It has derided the U.S. claims as propaganda. Several senior U.S. military officials said the weapons caches would undercut the Iranian denials and provide new evidence of continuing Iranian support for Shiite militants across Iraq.

"You can see the manufacturing dates right on the armaments themselves," one senior commander in Baghdad said. "These are very clearly weapons that were made in the last month or so."

Rear Adm. Gregory Smith, the top American military spokesman in Baghdad, said U.S. officials were "working on a briefing that we hope to be able to deliver in the next week or so." He said he would not be "disclosing the substance of the brief."

[freerepublic_or_die]

Iran undermines the goals an objectives of the US with impunity knowing there is little the US can do to stop it.

[hamboy]

Iran told to leave defense show in Malaysia for flouting U.N. rules+

Apr 24 03:45 AM US/Eastern

KUALA LUMPUR, April 24 (AP) - (Kyodo)—Iran has been booted from a major international defense show in the Malaysian capital for displaying "offensive" weapons that contravene United Nations rules, Malaysian Defense Minister Najib Abdul Razak said Thursday.

Iran is one of 49 countries, including the United States, Russia, Britain, France and Germany, that took part in the four-day Defense Services Asia Exhibition and Conference that began Monday.

The Iranian pavilion, which housed nine companies under the Iran Aviation Industries Organization and Iran Electronics Industries at the exhibition hall, was, however, sealed off on the second day of the event.

Najib, who is also deputy prime minister, said they were ordered to move out because their exhibition was "offensive."

"Unfortunately, when we came around to inspecting their stand, they displayed equipment that clearly contravened U.N. resolutions, equipment such as missiles and missile system and others," he told a press conference after touring the exhibition.

"The moment they crossed the line, we had no option but to terminate them," he added.

The United Nations had imposed a string of sanctions on Iran, including an embargo on weapons exports, because of its refusal to suspend its uranium enrichment program.

Najib said other countries, which he declined to name, had complained about Iran's exhibition.

He denied, however, that Malaysia was under pressure from Western countries.

The English daily New Straits Times reported Thursday that the United States, one of the biggest exhibitors, had threatened to pull out of the show if Iran did not leave.

Najib said Malaysia had informed the Iranian ambassador about the exhibition rules last week.

"We were left in a situation where we did not have any option since Malaysia is committed to respecting and adhering to the U.N. resolutions," he added.

Source:  http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D9083MGG0&show_article=1

[Hugin]

Iran undermines the goals an objectives of the US continues to kill American soldiers with impunity knowing there is little the US can is willing to do to stop it.

There, I fixed it for you.

[freerepublic_or_die]

Thank you for posting this article. I read about the Iranian incident in the story posted at FR yesterday.

Iran Expelled For Showing Missiles
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2006251/posts

Iran supplying arms to its Iraqi allies is infinitely more complicated, complex, nearly impossible for the US military to put a stop to it.

[doodad]

Why have we not mined that border and placed troops or drones?

[Bulldawg Fan]

There is plenty we can do about it, if we would. But its easier to turn our political head and let Americans continue to die. Disgusting.

[Wavrnr10]

That border should be publicly announced as closed and all air and water travel shut down down between the two. then do the same with Syria. Any incident of border crossing should be dealt with extreme predjudice.

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks for the link.

[hamboy]

They were booted out for displaying offensive weapons...