CRETE, Greece (PNN) - September 6, 2015 - A huge stash of weapons and ammunition has been found hidden aboard a cargo ship bound for Libya.
Greek authorities seized 5,000 shotguns and half a million rounds of ammunition found aboard the Haddad 1, a coast guard official said on Wednesday.
Videos released by the Hellenic Coast Guard show officers uncovering the arms, which it said had no accompanying documents and were concealed by furniture and gym mats.
The crew of seven - which is reportedly made up of Syrians, Egyptians and Indians - were arrested as inspectors searched 14 shipping containers aboard the Bolivian-registered vessel.
The ship is understood to have set off at the end of last month from the Turkish port of Iskenderun, about 50km from the Syrian border, and was intercepted near Crete.
Greek Marine Minister Christos Zois said, "The coast guard and other officers who participated in this operation deserve warm congratulations for their success in detecting and seizing the illegal weapons on this cargo ship. Their coordination, speed, high sense of professionalism, and seriousness in the preparation and combination of information led to the identification of this ship and the large quantity of arms and ammunition. The weapons and ammunition are still being contained and we hope that soon we will have more information on this case."
The Turkish government claimed the weapons were destined for the Sudanese police force and were fully documented.
Turkish foreign ministry spokesman Tanju Bilgic said, "If investigations by the Greek authorities show that the consignment is going to receivers other than those stated in the documentation, and if that is shared with us, naturally measures could be taken."