US Navy comes to aid of ship being ‘harassed’ by Iran
Tags: Navy, saudi arabia, Iran, United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, United States, Pakistan, India, Iraq, Strait of Hormuz, Bahrain
We’ve told you about how the rising tensions between the U-S and China have played out at sea.
Now — it appears tensions may be rising between U-S and Iranian navies.
This morning — the U-S Navy said its sailors came to the aid of a merchant ship the Navy said was being harassed by Iran Revolutionary Guard vessels.
The U-K’s Royal Navy also came to the ship’s aid.
This all went down in the Straight of Hormuz — located off Iran’s southern coast.
According to the U-S Navy — three Iranian fast-attack vessels with armed troops aboard approached the merchant ship Sunday afternoon.
That’s when the U-S and U-K navies stepped in.
In a statement — the U-S Navy said quote “The situation deescalated approximately an hour later when the merchant vessel confirmed the fast-attack craft departed the scene. The merchant ship continued transiting the Strait of Hormuz without further incident.”
An Iranian official said the vessels were simply responding to a distress signal coming from the merchant ship.
However — the signal came because of the armed men spotted on the Iranian vessels.
The incident comes as Iran’s navy commander announced plans to form a new naval alliance in the region.
The alliance would include Saudi Arabia — India — Pakistan — the United Arab Emirates — Bahrain — Qatar and Iraq.
Iran has recently been trying to mend ties with some of its neighboring countries.
In March — Saudi Arabia and Iran ended seven years of hostility under a deal that was mediated by China.