Six advanced anti-ship missiles, sent from Iran and shipped from Syria, were part of the weapons cargo seized on the "Victory" ship Tuesday morning, the IDF says. All of the weapons on board will be dislayed at a news conference Wednesday afternoon.
A preliminary list of weaponry and weaponry systems discovered includes:
- 230 mortar shells, 120 mm
- 2,270 mortar shells, 60 mm
- 6 C-704 anti-ship missiles
- 2 radar systems manufactured in England
- 2 launchers
- 2 hydraulic mounting cranes for radar system
- 66,960 bullets for the Kalashnikov, 7.62 millimeter
The C-704 shore-to-sea missiles have a range of 35 kilometers and according to assessments, their intended destination to Gaza would have constituted a significant gain in the weapons capabilities of terror organizations operating there. The missiles could have been used to sink Navy ships and private boats in the ports of Ashkelon and Ashdod.
The land-to-sea missiles were used by Hizbullah to attack an Israeli Navy boat, killing four people, in the 2006 Second Lebanon War.
The identification document for the anti-ship missiles was in Persian and contained emblems of the Iranian government. The ship left from the Syrian port of Latakia before stopping in Turkey to make its way to Egypt. The IDF estimates that Egypt and Turkey had no prior knowledge of the weaponry.
The Iranian news agency IRNA said that the Islamic Republic’s army totally rejected any involvement in the shipment of the weapons. “Israel is a regime made of lies and fabrications,” Major-General Ataollah Salehi said. “The Zionist regime will drown in the waters of the Mediterranean Sea, God willing, after the collapse of the Egyptian pharaoh."