A pair of Navy ships have for the first time nabbed a new kind of Iranian surface-to-air missiles during recent arms seizures in the Middle East.
U.S. weapons experts have gotten their first look at a new “uniquely Iranian-designed missile,” Navy Capt. William Urban, a U.S. Central Command spokesman, told reporters on Wednesday. Sailors aboard the destroyer Forrest Sherman and cruiser Normandy confiscated eight of the new 358-missiles during separate weapons seizures in the Middle East.
Weapons seized from Iran by crew of the USS Normandy, including 358 surface-to-air missile components and “Dehlavieh” anti-tank guided missiles, February 9, 2020. (U.S. Navy/Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Michael H. Lehman)
The Forrest Sherman got five of the surface-to-air missiles in November and the Normandy seized three more earlier this month. Both operations took place in the Arabian Sea.
Urban declined to talk about the new missile’s capabilities or what the U.S. has learned about it. The eight missiles — along with anti-tank missiles, pieces for land-attack and anti-ship cruise missiles, high-explosive warheads, drone parts, blasting caps and other items — were on their way to war-torn Yemen.