Iranian Navy ships dock in Port Sudan

Jamaran Class destoyer/Aspahbod

Two Iranian naval ships have docked in Sudan today.

According to Sudan's army spokesman Sawarmi Khaled Saad the two ships, one a warship and the other a navy supply ship, docked in Port Sudan. They were there in order to refuel before continuing on their journey elsewhere. (AP, May 5)

A chief assistant to the Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has recently said that there is "nothing peculiar" about Sudan's relations with Iran. He stressed that Tehran-Khartoum relations have not affected Sudan's relations with Arab Middle East states like Saudi Arabia.

A senior Sudanese opposition politician has recently asserted that relations between Sudan and Saudi Arabia amount to "zero".

Sudan also has close ties with Qatar which recently found itself in a diplomatic dispute with three of its fellow Gulf Cooperation Council states. This was a result of what they perceive to be Qatars slanted pro-Muslim Brotherhood disposition and that tiny country's diverging policies on other issues of interest to them. This dispute is said to have been resolved but it did nevertheless serve to show the tense relations which sometimes exists between these GCC alliance Arab monarchies.

Qatar has also seeking to establish free trade zones with Tehran. Furthermore Tehran and Doha are in talks to implement a 2010 security pact and enhance ties between the two countries. (Fars News, April 15)

And recently there has even been talk about building a causeway which will link Iran and Oman.

Half of U.S. spooks believe rockets on Klos-C headed to Sinai not Gaza

 

Above: 120 mm mortar bombs and M-302 rockets taken from Klos-C
(IDF on Facebook)

According to Reuters:

Some U.S. intelligence analysts and Middle East security officials believe that a rocket shipment seized by the Israeli navy in the Red Sea this month was destined for the Egyptian Sinai and not for the Gaza Strip, as Israel says.

A U.S. official and two non-Israeli regional sources said Israel appeared to be insisting on the Gaza destination in order to spare the military-backed interim Egyptian administration embarrassment as it struggles to impose order in the Sinai.

[...]

"Were the Israelis to say the rockets were going to Sinai, then they would also have had to say who in Sinai was going to receive the rockets," one source told Reuters, adding that such a statement would draw attention to the insurgents resisting Egypt's security sweeps in northern Sinai.

There now appears to be no clear consensus as to where these arms were ultimately destined.

It's been pointed out the rockets are too large and not intended for breakdown, making them impractical for smuggling into Gaza. The next guess is they were headed for Sinai. The 7x62 small arms ammo is now thought by some to be headed to other parts of Africa. And while most intelligence sources believe the mortar bombs were headed for Gaza, the off-loading of the entire shipment was actually to take place in Sudan, with ultimate destination(s) open to what appears now to be conjecture.

Iran Navy '27th Fleet' port of call Port Sudan

According to Tasnim News Agency:

The Iranian Navy's 27th fleet of warships docked in Port Sudan...the Navy announced on Wednesday.

The fleet of warships is comprised of Khark warship and Sabalan destroyer. Khark has 250 crewmembers and can carry three helicopters.

The Navy's public relations office said in a statement that the fleet docked in Port Sudan after conducting a month of naval mission in the regional waters and the Red Sea.

The statement added that the flotilla provided safe passage for 14 trade ships and oil tankers during its anti-piracy mission.

Latest IRIN task force comprising IRINS Sabalan (73) Alvand (Saam) class (Vosper Mk5 type) frigates, and IRINS Kharg (431) Kharg (modified OL) class replenishment ship.

File photo: IRINS Sabalan (73) frigate

File photo: IRINS Kharg (431) replenishment ship

Photos: FARS News Agency

Larijani to Attend Conference in Sudan

Iran Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani will travel to Sudan on Sunday to attend the general assembly meeting of Islamic Inter-Parliamentary Union (IIPU) scheduled to be held in Khartoum on 21-22 January. IIPU was established in 1999 at the initiative of Iran to act as voice for Islamic parliaments.

Photo: Iran Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani (IRNA)

Iran Warships Dock in Port Sudan

Iran’s 23^rd Fleet warships, IRIS Jamaran (76), a guided missile frigate and IRIS Bushehr (422), a replenishment ship, docked in Port Sudan today, making the second port call by the Iranian navy in Sudan in five days. A Sudanese navy spokesman said the visit was a normal port call. In a welcoming ceremony, Rear Admiral Abdullah al-Matri of Sudan called for “further expansion of military ties between Iran and Sudan.” (Fars News Agency/Press TV, 8 December)

Israel and the GCC are following the visit closely. Israel has expressed concerns of Iranian arms shipment to militant groups in Gaza through Sudan.

The GCC, particularly the Saudis, have their own concerns of closer ties between Tehran and Khartoum. After South Sudan broke away to become independent last year, Sudan lost three quarters of its oil production and began seeking bolstering its ties with Saudi Arabia and other Arab states in the Persian Gulf. Gulf states are now among the biggest investors in the country and have just funded a large sugar plant and Sudan's only shopping mall. But the close ties with Tehran, manifested today by Iranian navy’s port call, could make it difficult for Khartoum to expand its relations with the Gulf Arab states.

File photo: Guided Missile Frigate IRIR Jamaran (76) [Hamed Jafarnejad/Fars News Agency]

Israel Says Iran Sending New Fajr-5 Rockets to Gaza

Citing Israeli officials, The Sunday Times reported today that Israeli intelligence satellites have observed the loading of Iranian Fajr-5 rockets in Sudan destined for the Gaza Strip. Fajr-5 rockets were fired by Hamas and other Palestinian groups into the Tel Aviv and Jerusalem areas during last week’s Gaza conflict.

Last month, following an airstrike on a weapons plant near Khartoum, Israeli Defense Ministry accused Sudan of acting as a transit point for weapons shipment to Gaza, including Fajr-5 rockets.

The Times report also cited Israeli officials speculating that Iran could be moving longer-range ballistic missiles into Sudan, which could be aimed at Israel from that country.

File photo: Fajr-5 type rocket

What Can Be Learned from the Explosion in Sudan about an Attack on Iran?

“The attack on the Sudanese soil, and attributing it to the IAF, serves to send a message not only to Iran, but rather to the whole Middle East and even to the U.S., about the capabilities of the Israeli Air Force and the incessant preparation for the strengthening of the military option of attacking the nuclear project.”

What Can Be Learned from the Explosion in Sudan about an Attack on Iran?

An Israeli perspective by Amir Bohbot (Walla!News)

Translated by Viktoria Lymar (IranEdge)

Republished with permission from IranEdge.com

Photo credit: Reuters/IranEdge

Iran Navy '22nd Fleet' task force at Port Sudan

From PressTV:

In line with the Islamic Republic of Iran’s strategy of expanding its naval presence in international waters, Iran Navy’s 22nd fleet of warships has called at a Sudanese northeastern port in the Red Sea. The fleet which comprises Kharg helicopter carrier and Admiral Naqdi destroyer arrived at the Sudanese port on Monday. The Navy’s 22nd fleet was dispatched to the coasts of Djibouti and Bab el-Mandeb Strait in late September to convey Iran’s message of peace to the regional countries and maintain the security of shipping corridors against maritime terrorism. The Iranian commanders of the fleet are scheduled to meet with Sudanese Navy commanders during their stay in the North African country.

Identified warships are corvette IRINS Admiral Naqdi (84) and replenishment ship IRINS Kharg (431).

File photo: IRINS Kharg (431) replenishment ship

 

File photo: IRINS Admiral Naqdi (82) corvette

Presidents' aircraft arrive at Tehran

Aircraft of visiting presidents attending the International Conference on Terrorism (Mehrabad International Airport).

click to enlarge

Pakistan Air Force Gulfstream Aerospace G-IV Gulfstream IV-SP (J-755)

President Asif Ali Zardari, Islamic Republic of Pakistan

Ariana Afghan Airlines Airbus A310-304 (YA-CAV)

President Hamid Karzai, Islamic Republic of Afghanistan

Sudan Government Ilyushin Il-62M (ST-PRA)

President Omar Al-Bashir, Republic of Sudan

Iraq Government Airbus A300B4-203 (YI-APX)

President Jalal Talabani, Republic of Iraq

Somon Air Boeing 737-8GJ (EY-777)

President Emomalli Rahman, Republic of Tajikistan

Photos: Hassan Mousavi at Fars News Agency

Ahmadinejad Meets Sudanese Official

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (R) with Sudan's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Kamal Hassan Ali. Tehran, 28 March.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad today met with Sudan's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Kamal Hassan Ali in Tehran and emphasized the importance of Iran’s ties to Khartoum.

“Iran and Sudan will always stand together and the enemies cannot damage the relations between the two nations,” Ahmadinejad said. “There are many areas to increase bilateral cooperation whose activation will cause increasing progress and prosperity in the two countries,” he added [IRNA, 28 March].

The Islamic Republic has had close relations with Khartoum and now in the wake of the split in the country and the growing tensions in its relationship with some African countries, which led Senegal to cut its diplomatic ties with Iran last month, its relations with Khartoum has found an added importance for its foreign policy.

Photo: IRNA