Weapons in military show vehicles shuts Port of Dover

Two men entering Dover in vehicles containing weapons caused a security alert which led to the closure of the Kent ferry port.

Bomb disposal experts were called to the port and a 200m exclusion zone was set up from 17:00 GMT after UK Border Agency officials detained the pair.

Experts assessed the weapons, believed to be en route to a military show, and declared them safe.

The port has since re-opened but the alert left heavy congestion on roads.

The A20 was closed in both directions at the A2 (Jubilee Way) but traffic is returning to normal.

Ferries approaching the port were held in the English Channel under "standard procedure" while the alert was dealt with.

A Kent Police spokeswoman said: "The UK Border Agency had detained two men who had entered the country from France with a quantity of weapons."

The men, aged 36 and 44, were stopped by UK Border Agency officials at the port's Eastern Docks after arriving from France. One was in a lorry and the other in a van.

The items they had included weapons which police described as "military collectors' items".

They were all declared safe and the docks reopened nearly two hours later.

The men, who are not believed to be British, were being questioned on suspicion of offences believed to fall under the Landmines Act 1998, police added.

The police spokeswoman said: "Dover's Eastern Docks has been reopened and the area around the port is getting back to normal."

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