Authorities in Italy have arrested a Lebanese-flagged cargo ship’s captain after it was seized In the Port of Genoa. The ship is believed to be trafficking arms, including tanks and artillery to Libya. The ship’s captain, Joussef Tartiussi, a Lebanese national, was arrested on suspicion of trying to influence his crew’s testimony and concealing evidence.
The seizure is in accordance with the UN arms embargo on Libya that stipulates that there should be no deliveries of weapons to the war-torn country. Intelligence revealed that the weapons were loaded at the Turkish port Mersin from where they were en route to Tripoli Libya.
The shipment included tanks, howitzers, machineguns and air defense systems and was supposedly escorted by Turkish military officers that directed the crew to declare the Tripoli stop was due to mechanical problems.
The Turkish government backs Fayez al-Sarraj, prime minister of Libya’s internationally-recognized government, fighting since last April for control of Tripoli against the Libyan National Army led by eastern-based commander Khalifa Haftar.
