Iran unsuccessfully pressed Sudan to let it build a permanent naval base on the African country’s Red Sea coast, something that would have allowed Tehran to monitor maritime traffic to and from the Suez Canal and Israel, according to a senior Sudanese intelligence official.
Iran has supplied Sudan’s military with explosive drones to use in its fight with a rebel warlord and offered to provide a helicopter-carrying warship if Sudan had granted permission for the base, said Ahmad Hasan Mohamed, an intelligence adviser to Sudan’s military leader.
“The Iranians said they wanted to use the base for intelligence gathering,” Mohamed said in an interview. “They also wanted to station warships there.” He said Khartoum turned down Iran’s proposal to avoid alienating the U.S. and Israel.
A naval base on the Red Sea would allow Tehran to tighten its grip on one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes, where it is helping Yemen-based Houthi rebels launch attacks on commercial vessels. Iran and the Houthis say the attacks are aimed at punishing Israel and its allies for the fighting in Gaza. Iran’s regional rivals, Israel, Egypt and Saudi Arabia, all have direct access to the waterway.
Iran has also been sending increasingly sophisticated weapons to its Houthi allies in Yemen, enhancing their ability to attack merchant vessels and disrupt international commerce despite weeks of U.S.-led airstrikes. A U.S.-led multinational force has also been deployed to protect seaborne traffic.
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