Iran intercepts U.S.-made weapons carried by Iraqi groups

In March 2024 Iran’s Revolutionary Guard announced that it had intercepted and seized a shipment of U.S.-made weapons that had been smuggled into Iraq for use by Iranian‑backed militias. The cache, reportedly hidden in trucks and containers crossing the Iran‑Iraq border, included small arms, ammunition and rocket‑propelled grenades. Iran said the weapons were part of a covert U.S. effort to arm Iraqi groups opposed to Tehran, and it confiscated them to prevent them from reaching the militias. The incident heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington and underscored the ongoing proxy rivalry in the region. Views Nigeria