Arms from Turkey, Syria, Iran to Hezbollah

JERUSALEM, Aug. 12 (UPI) -- A secret meeting of Iranian and Turkish intelligence officials has led to a new weapons supply route for Hezbollah, a report says.

Iranian and Turkish intelligence officials recently signed an agreement that establishes territorial continuity for Turkey, Iran, Syria and Lebanon, and guarantees a constant supply of weapons to Hezbollah, a report in the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera said.

Details of the agreement signed between Ankara and Tehran show a direct link between Iran's Revolutionary Guards and Hezbollah, the Hebrew daily Yedioth Aharonoth quoted the Italian newspaper as saying Thursday.

Italian reporter and terror expert Guido Olimpio said the agreement was recently signed at a meeting between Hussein Saab, head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards secret service, and the recently appointed Turkish intelligence chief Hakkan Fidan, and solves Hezbollah's ongoing search for weapons suppliers.

Yedioth Aharonoth said Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak, in closed meetings, expressed concern about Fidan's appointment, fearing the secrets shared between the two countries would be leaked to Tehran.

The new weapons route will allow the transport of sophisticated weaponry including rockets and missiles to pass through Syria to Lebanon and Hezbollah, the Italian newspaper said. The transfer would be coordinated by Turkish and Iranian agents and Hezbollah operatives, and the route secured when the truckloads of weapons pass through, the Italian paper said.

"The Iranians are interested in building a similar network to that established in Sudan and their final goal is to assist Hamas," Olimpio said.

In Khartoum, Sudanese, Iranian, and Palestinian agents operate with the help of Egyptian collaborators he said. Iran is trying to set up a similar network for Hezbollah, he added.

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