Iranian Cargo Ships No Longer Heading Toward Yemen

US Speculated Ships Were Carrying Weapons

A nine ship Iranian cargo convoy has been the subject of a lot of speculation by Pentagon officials, who figured it may well be carrying weapons, and might conceivably be en route to Yemen.

Today, US officials conceded that the convoy, whose intentions and cargo are unclear, is no longer headed in the general direction of Yemen, and now might be heading toward Iran instead.

Iran has not addressed what the ships are doing, though today two Iranian Navy ships met the convoy and escorted it in its new direction. The US had previously boarded a Panamanian ship, accusing it of carrying Iranian weapons, but not finding anything.

The Pentagon had made its deployment on warships off the coast of Yemen primarily about this mystery convoy, saying it gives them “options.” The ships are also participating in the Saudi naval blockade of Yemen.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.