GCIS/MSS INTELLIGENCE BRIEFING: SUEZ UPDATE: Iranian Ships Dock in Syria

GCIS/MSS INTELLIGENCE BRIEFING:

ISSUED BY: GCIS Communications Command Center

SOURCE: YNet News

23February2011 12:04pmEST

GCIS/MSS INTELLIGENCE UPDATE: Two Iranian naval ships arrived Wednesday afternoon at the Port of Lattakia in Syria, after crossing the Suez Canal Tuesday, Iranian news agency IRNA reported.

An Iranian senior official told IRNA that Iranian Navy Commander Admiral Habibula Siari is slated to arrive  to Damascus later on Wednesday, accompanied by a delegation of military officials.

The source noted that the ships' arrival will be marked by a special ceremony at the port, which will be attended by officials from both countries.

The delegation is scheduled to stay in Syria for "a short time", and will then continue sailing in the Mediterranean Sea, the source noted.  (read full report)

"GCIS/MSS INTELLIGENCE UPDATE" is a cooperative intelligence briefing presented by Griffith Colson Intelligence Service and Machaseh Security Service, and provided to the public for informative purposes only. All subject matter is credited to it's source of origin, and is not intended to represent original content authored by GCIS, MSS or it's partners or affiliates.

GCIS/MSS INTELLIGENCE BRIEFING: SUEZ UPDATE: Two Iranian warships sail from Suez Canal

ISSUED BY: GCIS Communications Command Center

SOURCE: Philly

23February2011 4:30amEST

GCIS/MSS INTELLIGENCE UPDATE: JERUSALEM - Two Iranian warships sailed Tuesday from the Suez Canal into the Mediterranean, the first such trip in at least three decades, eliciting Israeli allegations that Tehran is seeking to dominate the Middle East.

The vessels headed toward Syria but were expected to remain in international waters as they passed the Israeli coast.

The voyage took the frigate Alvand and the supply ship Kharq close to NATO's southern flank and could further destabilize the Middle East, a region reeling from an unprecedented wave of antigovernment rebellions.

In Tehran, the deputy commander of the Iranian navy said that Iran had "surprised the Zionist regime" with the journey to the Mediterranean.

"The world arrogance [United States] should know that the army of the Islamic Republic is fully prepared to defend the holy ideals of the Islamic Republic, and this readiness grows day by day," Brig. Gen. Abdolrahim Mousavi told the official Iranian news agency IRNA.

In Washington, State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley declined to say whether the transit in and of itself, or the Egyptian decision to allow it, was a provocation.

"We will be watching carefully to see where these ships go and the implications of that," he said.

Egypt is the gatekeeper of the strategic canal that links the Red Sea and the Mediterranean.

Egypt's military rulers, who took power from ousted President Hosni Mubarak on Feb. 11, appeared to have no choice but to allow the passage. An international convention says the canal must be open "to every vessel of commerce or of war."

Iranian warships have not passed through the Suez Canal since 1979.

In sending warships to the Mediterranean now, Iran was asserting itself as a regional power and testing whether Egypt's new rulers will stick to the pro-Western line of the Mubarak government. Some said the voyage also signals that Iran is ready to come to the aid of regional allies, including Syria and Iranian proxies Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denounced Iran late Tuesday, but he did not refer directly to the two warships.

"Iran seeks to exploit the earthquake" now shaking the region, he said. "It is seeking to bring down democratic reform. It is seeking to prevent it. It is seeking to shut down the lights and create another era of darkness like the one we have in Tehran."  (read full report)

"GCIS/MSS INTELLIGENCE UPDATE" is a cooperative intelligence briefing presented by Griffith Colson Intelligence Service and Machaseh Security Service, and provided to the public for informative purposes only. All subject matter is credited to it's source of origin, and is not intended to represent original content authored by GCIS, MSS or it's partners or affiliates.

GCIS/MSS INTELLIGENCE BRIEFING: SUEZ UPDATE:Iran hails warships' mission in Mediterranean

ISSUED BY: GCIS Communications Command Center

SOURCE: The Washington Post

23February2011 3:47amEST

GCIS/MSS INTELLIGENCE UPDATE: CAIRO - Iranian officials on Tuesday hailed the passage of two warships through Egypt's Suez Canal as a milestone in Iran's effort to play a greater role in maritime affairs.

Israeli officials called it a worrisome provocation at a time of upheaval and deepening tension in the Middle East.

The Alvand frigate, one of the oldest vessels in the Iranian navy's five-ship fleet, became the first Iranian warship to sail into the Mediterranean since the 1979 Islamic revolution. The frigate, built in 1968 and in dire need of repairs, is en route to the Syrian port of Latakia for a training mission and is accompanied by a supply ship.

The Iranian navy last year deployed its newest destroyer, the Jamaran, to fight Somali pirates operating in the Arabian Sea. Another recent mission took the destroyer to Sri Lanka.

Brig. Gen. Abdolrahim Mousavi, the deputy commander of Iran's military, was quoted by the country's official Islamic Republic News Agency as saying that the Suez transit had succeeded "by the grace of God" and describing Israeli officials' concerns as "negative propaganda."

Israel's vice prime minister, Silvan Shalom, said the timing of the crossing was an unmistakable message from Iran that it is attempting to expand its influence in the region.

"The objective is to signal to the leaders of the Arab world who the new leader is in the Middle East," Shalom said.

Shalom's remarks were the latest in a string of condemnations by Israeli officials, who have been monitoring the ships' movements. (read full report)

"GCIS/MSS INTELLIGENCE UPDATE" is a cooperative intelligence briefing presented by Griffith Colson Intelligence Service and Machaseh Security Service, and provided to the public for informative purposes only. All subject matter is credited to it's source of origin, and is not intended to represent original content authored by GCIS, MSS or it's partners or affiliates.

GCIS INTELLIGENCE BRIEFING: What Cargo May Be Aboard Iranian Warships Transiting the Suez Canal?

ISSUED BY: GCIS Communications Command Center

SOURCE: Counterterrorism Blog

23February2011 2:05amEST

GCIS INTELLIGENCE UPDATE: Iran’s leaders are closely watching the progress of two of their navy warships, the 1500 ton frigate Alvand and the 33,000 ton refueling and supply ship Kharg, through the Suez Canal. They reportedly will arrive at a Syrian port in a few days. The passage of Iranian warships into the Mediterranean is rightfully viewed, in itself, as a provocative act by Israel and by NATO naval forces. Iranian warships haven't been seen in the Mediterranean since the 1970s. But, perhaps, there should also be great concern with the cargoes these warships may be carrying. What a better way could Iran have to circumvent UN and like-minded country sanctions.

UN Security Council Resolution 1749 ( March 2007) prohibits Iran from “supply(ing), sell(ing), or transfer(ing) directly or indirectly ... any arms or related material." All countries are obligated to prohibit the procurement of such items from Iran by their nationals, or to use their flag vessels or aircraft to transport such items. And, these prohibitions are further re-enforced by paragraph 8 of UN Security Council Resolution 1929 (June 2010).

In November 2009, Israeli naval units interdicted the German-owned freighter Francorp in international waters near Cyprus. The ship had called in Iran prior to its transit to the Mediterranean through the Suez Canal. The Israeli navy seized 500 tons of Katyusha rockets, mortars, bullets, and grenades concealed aboard the ship in containers belonging to the Iranian shipping line. The ship’s manifest had indicated a much more benign cargo destined for Syria. This is believed to be only one of many occurences involving illicit shipments of Iranian origin arms in violation of UN sanctions. (read full report)

"GCIS INTELLIGENCE UPDATE" is an intelligence briefing presented by Griffith Colson Intelligence Service, and provided to the public for informative purposes only. All subject matter is credited to it's source of origin, and is not intended to represent original content authored by GCIS, it's partners or affiliates. All opinions presented are those of the author, and not necessarily those of GCIS or it's partners.