Report: Weapons Seized in Thailand Possibly Destined for Hizbullah
Weapons aboard a cargo plane discovered in Bangkok were most probably destined for Hizbullah, Israel”s mass-selling Yediot Aharonot daily quoted Western intelligence sources as saying.
The sources also did not rule out the possibility of the shipment being destined for Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
A Thai court on Monday extended by 12 days the detention of four Kazakhs and a man from Belarus who flew into Thailand on the plane carrying more than 35 tons of sanctions-busting weapons from North Korea.
The cache, including missiles, rocket-propelled grenades and components for surface-to-air missiles, was discovered after the pilot from Belarus and the four other crew from Kazakhstan landed to refuel at Bangkok”s domestic Don Mueang airport on Friday, officials said.
The men were charged Sunday with possessing weapons for war and appeared at the court Monday morning.
"The court approved our request to detain them for another 12 days and they will be moved to Bangkok Remand Prison while their lawyer seeks bail," said national police spokesman Pongsapat Pongcharoen after the hearing.
Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said Sunday it was not yet clear why the weapons were being transported.
"We only know they were due to refuel in Sri Lanka (after Bangkok)," Abhisit told reporters.
However, government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn said the plane was going to "a destination in the Middle East" to unload the weapons. After that, according to the crew, it had planned to refuel in the United Arabs Emirates and Azerbaijan before flying to its final destination in the Ukraine.
The plane began its journey in North Korea”s capital Pyongyang. Abhisit said the weapons came from a North Korean company and the Russian cargo plane was registered in Georgia.
He said the crew requested permission to land for refueling in Bangkok and then lied to inspectors about their cargo, saying it was oil-drilling equipment.
"We received the tip-off from intelligence reports that said this plane was suspicious. When the plane refueled, we searched it and found the weapons," he said. Thai media said the tip-off came from U.S. intelligence.