Washington : An Iranian convoy of ships suspected of carrying weapons for Huthi rebels in Yemen has turned around and headed north, away from the war-torn country, US defense officials said on Thursday.
The move came after the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier and other American warships deployed off Yemen’s coast to track the Iranian flotilla and possibly prevent any arms deliveries to the Iran-backed Shiite rebels.
The nine-ship Iranian convoy is no longer on the same course and is now south of Salalah, Oman, the official said. The flotilla included two armed vessels, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “It was possible the Iranians “could make a turn to Yemen at any time,” the official added.
The convoy was moving “slowly” and the United States was closely monitoring the ships, the official said. The UN Security Council earlier this month imposed an arms embargo on the Huthi forces in Yemen
