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WASHINGTON (AFP) –
An Iranian man has pleaded guilty to trafficking sensitive US weapons to the Islamic republic, part of what he believed were preparations for a possible war between the two nations, US prosecutors said Wednesday.

In a case unveiled for the first time on Wednesday, Delaware
prosecutors said Amir Ardebili pleaded guilty in May 2008 to 14 counts
of violating US arms control rules and will be sentenced later this
month.

After an international undercover operation Ardebili was apprehended in
an unnamed Central Asian country in October 2007 and extradited to
United States, where he has been secretly detained since January 2008.

He was described by prosecutors as "prolific" arms dealer, trafficking
millions of dollars worth of components to his sole customer, the
Iranian government.