![\"Deployment](\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2009\/01\/port_assab.jpg\" "\\"Deployment")
By: Reza Shafa<\/p>\nBy: Reza Shafa<\/p>\n
According to obtained reports, the mullahs\u2019 regime has recently deployed military forces and equipment in one of the ports of Eritrea.<\/p>\n
The African Affairs branch of the terrorist Qods Force is an organ that implements the regime\u2019s goals of exporting fundamentalism to Africa. One of the targeted countries in northern Africa is Eritrea.<\/p>\n
According to intelligence reports, in recent weeks, the mullahs\u2019 regime has installed long-range and anti-aircraft missiles, and has deployed a number of members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the outskirts of Eritrea\u2019s Port of Assab near the Red Sea. This initiative by the mullahs takes place in the context of agreements the regime had signed in Asmera with the government of Eritrea.<\/p>\n
These forces and equipment have been transferred to the region using the regime\u2019s submarines. The agreement and the deployment of forces and long-range missiles in the Port of Assab have been carried out under the guise of renovating the port\u2019s oil refinery (which is an old facility). The mullahs\u2019 regime is operating there under the cover of refining crude oil in the port\u2019s refinery. It has also crafted phony documents in this regard.<\/p>\n
But, the question remains: What does revamping an old refinery have anything to do with the deployment of missiles? This was the question that prompted doubts and suspicions regarding the regime\u2019s actions. Some intelligence sources indicated that by installing military equipment and forces in Eritrea\u2019s Port of Assab, the mullahs\u2019 regime actually intends to exert control over the Bab-el-Mandeb strait, situated 3 km from Eritrea and Yemen. The Bab-el-Mandeb strait (\u201cGate of Tears\u201d), is the closest spot to the Gulf of Aden, which connects the Suez Canal and the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean, and is in fact the passageway for oil tankers and cargo ships in the African and Southwest Asian regions. As such, this area is of exceptional strategic importance. The regime\u2019s objective is to cause disturbances and sabotage oil tankers of oil-rich countries of the region, such as Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and African countries, in the event that during a potential military conflict, the Strait of Hormuz is closed off to oil tankers of the Persian Gulf.<\/p>\n
This passageway is significant because some African countries like Nigeria, Sudan, Gabon, South Africa, New Guinea, and the vast desert between Angola and Nigeria are very rich in oil, and American oil companies are competing with each other for presence in this area. Some reports estimate that the discovery of oil in recent years has led the US to obtain 25% of its oil from this continent, essentially transported though the Bab-el-Mandeb strait.<\/p>\n
Eritrea\u2019s political opposition had previously warned about making deals with the mullahs\u2019 regime and had announced that this act is tantamount to giving a military presence to the regime in a strategic location, which bears significant risks, and is analogous to playing with fire. In addition to the vital significance of this region for the US, the Port of Assab is also close to the French navy base at Djibouti, a place where a large number of NATO soldiers and US fleet are located.<\/p>\n
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\nReza Shafa is an expert on the Iranian regime’s Intelligence networks, both in Iran and abroad. He has done extensive research on Iranian Ministry of Information and Security (MOIS) also known as VEVAK, Intelligence Office of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and Qods Force among others. Currently he is a contributor to NCRI website.<\/p>\n
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By: Reza Shafa According to obtained reports, the mullahs’ regime has recently deployed military forces and equipment in one of the ports of Eritrea. The African Affairs branch of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":32898,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[175],"class_list":{"0":"post-5938","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-iran-resistance","8":"tag-updated"},"yoast_head":"\n