A vessel operating under the flag of Antigua and Barbuda was intercepted by the Israeli navy Tuesday night and was found to be loaded with smuggled weapons.

In a Washington Post article published yesterday it was stated that the vessel was rigged to appear as if it were carrying civilian goods.

Lt. Col. Avital Leibovich, a spokeswoman for the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said a navy special forces unit boarded the ship about 100 miles off the Israeli coast and found "dozens of containers" of arms.

"We had a suspicion" about the ship, which had passed through the Suez Canal and was heading north, Leibovich said.

The ship was directed to the Israeli port of Ashdod for further investigation. Leibovich said the IDF expected to release more details on the ship, the cargo and the crew later Wednesday.

IDF officials said they suspect the arms shipment originated in Iran.