[PHOTOS] The United States confiscates an arms cache in the Arabian Sea

The US Fifth Fleet announced, Sunday, that it has seized a huge cache of illegal Russian and Chinese weapons from a dhow in international waters of the Arabian Sea.

“The weapons cache includes dozens of advanced Russian anti-tank guided missiles, thousands of Chinese Type 56 assault rifles, hundreds of PKM machine guns, sniper rifles and grenade launchers,” she said in a press release.

Cruiser USS Monterey The Fifth Fleet, based in Bahrain, said it intercepted the dhow and discovered the cargo during a routine ascent, during an operation on May 6 and 7.

She added that the source of the weapons, now in the custody of the United States, as well as their intended destination, is under investigation.

The fleet said, “After removing all illegal shipments, the seaworthiness of the boat was assessed, and after questioning, its crew was provided with food and water before being released.”

The latter did not specify where the ship came from, but US Navy patrols in the region are regularly working against “the transport of illegal cargo that often funds terrorism and illegal activities.”