Iran says arms seized in Nigeria were for Gambia
Wed Feb 9, 2011 10:36am GMT
By Camillus Eboh
ABUJA (Reuters) - Crates of
weapons seized in Nigeria last year had been sent from Iran and were
destined for Gambia as part of a three-year-old agreement between the
two countries, the Iranian ambassador to Nigeria said.
Nigeria reported Iran to the U.N. Security Council in November for an
apparent breach of U.N. sanctions. Tehran's ambassador said he had told
Nigerian authorities the shipment was part of legitimate trade with
Gambia.
The weapons included assorted calibres of mortars and 107mm rockets
-- designed to attack static targets and used by armies to support
infantry units -- and shells for a 23mm anti-aircraft gun, hidden in
containers marked building materials.
"Security agencies in your country assessed these containers. I
informed them formally that this consignment was not meant for Nigeria,
it was meant for another country which you know is the Gambia," Hussein
Abdullahi told reporters in Nigeria's capital Abuja late on Tuesday.
"It is based on the agreement signed between Iran and the Gambia
three years back and this is not the first part of that consignment.
This is the third part and I asked them to please not allow people who
are not happy with our friendly relations to gain advantage of this
incident," Abdullahi said.
Iranian Azim Adhajani and Nigerian businessman Ali Usman Abbas Jega
pleaded not guilty at a Lagos court last week to charges of importing
prohibited firearms.
Prosecution documents identify Adhajani as a Tehran-based businessman and member of the Revolutionary Guard.
Diplomatic sources told Reuters shortly after the goods were seized
that two members of the al-Quds force -- an elite unit of the
Revolutionary Guard which specialises in foreign operations for Iran --
were involved. The second Iranian had diplomatic immunity and has since
left the country.
Iran has said the cargo belonged to a private firm and was for sale
"legitimately". It has described the seizure as a misunderstanding.
A 2007 U.N. Security Council resolution states Iran must not "supply,
sell or transfer directly or indirectly from its territory or by its
nationals ... any arms or related material", under sanctions imposed
over its disputed nuclear programme.
As a non-permanent member of the Security Council, Nigeria was
obliged to report the apparent breach to the U.N. sanctions committee.
Experts from the world body visited Nigeria last month to assess whether
the shipment had contravened the ban but its findings have not yet been
made public.
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