A North Korean cargo of gas masks and light arms was intercepted by Turkish authorities en-route to Syria in April, Japanese daily the Sankei Shimbun said on Tuesday.

The newspaper said that a Libyan-flagged vessel, the Al En Ti Sar, was stopped carrying firearms, large quantities of gas-masks, and ammunition on April 3 at the port of Dardanelles, in contravention of international sanctions prohibiting either North Korea or Syria from trading in arms.