Israeli naval commandos operating deep in international waters have boarded a cargo ship carrying arms the Jewish state said was being smuggled from Iran to militants in the Gaza Strip.
"After midnight I gave the order to the navy to seize the ship, the Victoria," said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. "We had clear evidence that the vessel was carrying weapons intended to harm Israel."
The Liberian-flagged vessel was intercepted as it sailed about 200 nautical miles west of Israel's territorial waters, and warships then began escorting it to the southern port of Ashdod, said military spokeswoman Lieutenant Colonel Avital Leibovich.
Israel said the vessel had set sail from the Turkish port of Mersin and was heading for Alexandria in Egypt, but that the arms originated in Iran and were destined for the Gaza Strip.
"On the boat we discovered many weapons destined for terror groups in the heart of Gaza," said Netanyahu. "The source of the weapons was Iran, which is trying to arm the Strip."
He said Iran had sent the arms through a "relay station" -- in an apparent reference to Syria.
The military said it believed the weapons were loaded onto the ship in the Syrian port of Latakia and stressed that Turkey was in no way involved.
"As far as we understand it, Turkey has no relevance or connection to this event," said Leibovich. "This was from Syria to radical components in Gaza."
Defence Minister Ehud Barak said Israeli forces had been tracking the vessel for several days.
The ship belongs to a German company, but was chartered by French firm, the army said, noting that commandos had boarded with the permission of the crew.
"It was a compliant boarding -- there was no resistance, no violence used whatsoever," said Leibovich.
"The capture of the ship was done deep at sea in accordance with international practices," said Netanyahu.
Israel did not immediately release any details about the quantity or type of weapons believed to be on board.
But Leibovich said weapons had been found in at least three shipping containers and the rest would be searched when it reached Ashdod, adding that there were "hundreds of containers" on board.
Later, the military released photos that showed masked soldiers apparently on the Victoria uncovering hundreds of crates filled with ammunition and mortar shells.
Israel has frequently accused Iran and Syria of trying to smuggle weapons to Gaza's Hamas rulers as well as to the Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah.
In November 2009, Israel said its navy had intercepted a ship carrying "hundreds of tonnes" of arms from Iran to Hezbollah in a raid dozens of miles off the Israeli coast.
The shipment was among the largest ever seized by Israel, dwarfing the 50 tonnes of weapons found aboard the Karine A seized in 2002 on its way to Gaza, which dealt a major blow to relations between the Palestinians and Washington.
In May 2001, the Israeli navy intercepted another boat, the Santorini, which was carrying 40 tonnes of rockets, anti-tank weaponry, mortars and automatic weapons for armed groups in Gaza.
Israel still maintains a strict naval blockade on Gaza to prevent the smuggling of weapons into the territory.
Last year, the navy prevented a number of aid ships from reaching the coastal enclave. In one incident, they stormed a six-ship flotilla in an operation that went disastrously wrong, with the deaths of nine pro-Palestinian activists from Turkey.