Iran Seeking to Transfer Advanced Weaponry to Hizbullah

Israel’s Foreign Ministry director-general Dore Gold warned on Thursday that Iran is trying to smuggle advanced weaponry, including the SA-22 Air Defense System and the Yakhont anti-ship cruise missile, from Syria to Hizbullah, The Jerusalem Post reported.

Gold, in Berlin on a diplomatic trip, has been alerting German officials to the imminent danger posed by Iran to the region, especially with the nuclear deal close to finalization and sanctions about to come off.

The Israeli diplomat asked: “If this type of activity has been going on for the last six months, Gold asked, “then what happens when the sanctions on Iran are lifted, and they get a cash bonus of up to $150 billion?”

His mission, he said, is to stir European diplomats from an unwarranted complacency about Iran. “There is an underlying assumption in the West that Iran may be adopting a more moderate course of action,” Gold said, though all the evidence is to the contrary.

Meanwhile, the other side is working hard to keep up the appearances of moderation.

In Berlin at the same time as Gold was Iran’s deputy foreign minister for Middle East affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian. The Iranian diplomat has been meeting with senior German officials to persuade them to ignore the Israeli warnings.

This article appeared in print on page 7 of the August 21st, 2015 edition of Hamodia.