US-Iraq raid finds more Iran-made weapons

US and Iraqi forces have seized a large weapons cache that includes parts for sophisticated roadside bombs that are believed to originate in Iran...

US and Iraqi forces have seized a large weapons cache that includes parts for sophisticated roadside bombs that are believed to originate in Iran, the US military investigators said.

Military officials said the arsenal is one of the biggest found north of the Iraqi capital and contains components for so-called EFPs — explosively formed projectiles that fire a slug of molten metal that can penetrate armoured vehicles.

The US military has said elite Iranian corps are funneling EFPs to Shi’ite militias in Iraq for use against American troops. The area where the cache was found is dominated by Sunni insurgents, but also includes pockets of Shi’ites.

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Earlier this month, US officials showed reporters in Baghdad pieces of EFPs they said were directly traceable to Iran. An informant tipped off Iraqi police to the weapons stash on Saturday, said the military in a statement. It was discovered near Baqouba, the provincial capital of Diyala province, about 60 km northeast of Baghdad.

Along with the EFPs, the weapons cache contained more than two dozen mortars and 15 rockets. There were enough metal disks to make 130 EFPs, the military said.

The origin of the weapons seized on Saturday was being investigated, said Lt Col Michael Donnelly, spokesman for Multinational Division-North. “This local tip led to what is the most potentially lethal IED cache seized in northern Iraq in the past eight months,” he said.