Iran-Venezuela Connection

The United States has taken notice of a regular flight between Tehran, Damascus, and Caracas.  The “commercial flight” run by Venezuelan Canviasa Airlines is closed to the public, and no public records are available for who or what is on the flight.  It seems that no one goes through customs or immigration when they travel on the flight.

I have written about this issue several times in the past.  I wrote about weapons links via Venezuela and Iran’s growing influence there.  Israel has formally cut ties with the Venezuela as well.  CNN has finally caught up to what Israel Situation readers have known all along:

According to the State Department’s latest country report on terrorism, which covers 2009, “President [Hugo] Chavez continued to strengthen Venezuela’s relationship with state sponsor of terrorism Iran. Iran and Venezuela continued weekly Iran Airlines flights connecting Tehran and Damascus with Caracas.”

A 2007 report went further, raising concerns about the travelers from Syria and Iran who might be onboard. It said in part, “Passengers on these flights were not subject to immigration and customs controls at Simon Bolivar International Airport” in Caracas.

It also noted that one passenger who bought a ticket on the route that year was Abdul Kadir, who was convicted this month of plotting a 2007 attack on fuel pipelines for New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport. He was arrested on a plane bound for Caracas and never made his connection for the flight to Iran.