Iran-Iraq border trade heavy but no weapons found

[Barrett808]

Source: Reuters

Iran-Iraq border trade heavy but no weapons found
By Luke Baker

BASRA, Iraq (Reuters) - Business is booming on the Iran-Iraq border. Despite a war in one country and Western sanctions against the other's nuclear program, trucks full of everything from fresh produce to furniture and clothes to consumer electronics trundle to the 1,400 km (900 mile) frontier every day.

But British officials say along with trade in legitimate goods, which has grown in the past year, there is also a steady flow of "lethal aid" from Iran to Iraq, including rockets and explosives used to make road-side bombs.

Iran denies arming Iraqi Shia Muslim militias, which have carried out scores of deadly attacks against British and American troops in Iraq.

But British officials are sure Iranian weaponry is coming through. As evidence they mention rocket shrapnel that bears Iranian markings, but at the same time say they have no concrete proof that Iran is supplying Iraq.

"It's fair to say that no one has caught anyone red-handed bringing in lethal aid across the border," said Major Anthony Lamb, who oversees training of Iraqi border enforcement units. "Hundreds of searches are carried out every day, but as yet, there hasn't been a direct seizure of lethal aid."

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071101/ts_nm/britain_iraq_iran_dc

[mlevans]

1. The Iranians must be employing fakirs...

who are skilled clairvoyants. Consequently they know which shipments are going to be searched, and don't load any rockets or explosives on those trucks. I mean it couldn't be anything as simple as all that weaponry crossing the border being a fairy tale, could it?