A ship carrying at least a dozen scud-type missiles from North Korea has been intercepted in the Arabian Sea.
The ship was about one thousand kilometers off the Horn of Africa Monday when it was stopped by two Spanish warships and boarded. Quoting U-S defense officials, the Cable News Network says a U-S military disposal unit boarded the ship Tuesday.
The ship's destination and its registry were not immediately clear. Initial reports said it was heading for Yemen, while the Cable News Network quoted authorities as saying it may have been bound for coastal Africa.
U-S officials say the ship's registry showed it was carrying cement, and that the missiles and missile parts were concealed under the cement cargo.
U-S officials are quoted as saying U-S intelligence had been tracking the shipment since it left North Korean waters several weeks ago.
Yemen has been identified by the United States as a haven for terrorists, and U-S military advisors have been assisting Yemeni authorities in the hunt for elements of the al-Qaida terrorist network.