Iran Claims 'Full Interception and Control Over' US Navy Vessel
Iran is boasting that it has intercepted an American naval vessel, a claim the U.S. Navy says is news to it.
On Thursday, Iran’s state TV posted footage of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps’ speedboats.
“The IRGC Navy has released images of its full interception and control over U.S. and foreign forces in the Persian Gulf,” a translated version of the tweet read.
رهگیری قایق های تندرو آمریکایی توسط شناورهای سپاه
نیروی دریایی سپاه پاسداران انقلاب اسلامی با انتشار تصاویری, قدرت رهگیری و اشراف کامل خود را بر نیروهای امریکایی و بیگانه در خلیج فارس نشان داد. pic.twitter.com/o6wZYeLPkc
— PressTV Farsi (@PressTV_Farsi) October 7, 2021
A Navy spokesman said he did not know of any such incident in the past few days, according to The Washington Post.
Cmdr. Timothy Hawkins, a spokesman for the 5th Fleet, said there had been no hostile interaction with Iran in the past two days of which he was aware.
Most of the video shows Iranian speedboats zipping through waters with no clear details as to time or place.
The video shows a vessel with a U.S. flag. Personnel are visible on the ship.
It was not clear if the video was from one incident or was edited to include multiple encounters.
A voice is heard in Farsi, saying what the Post translated as, “Keep chasing them.”
NBC’s Ali Arouzi tweeted further details about the video.
“You can hear the Iranian crew saying ‘point to the dshk (heavy machine gun)at them, let’s get closer & give them a warning,’” he wrote.
Iranian media just released video of IRGC speed boats allegedly chasing US fast boats in the Persian Gulf. You can hear the Iranian crew saying “point to the dshk (heavy machine gun)at them, let’s get closer & give them a warning” It’s unclear exactly when the incident took place pic.twitter.com/HeR1dHDi9a
— Ali Arouzi (@aliarouzi) October 7, 2021
In May, a U.S. Coast Guard ship fired warning shots at Iranian vessels after they swarmed American vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
The Pentagon said 13 so-called “fast boats” failed to heed warnings and were fired upon, Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said at the time, according to a Department of Defense news release.
Kirby said the incident took place as six vessels were escorting the guided-missile submarine USS Georgia.
“Harassment by the IRGC Navy is not a new phenomenon,” he added. “It is something that all our commanding officers and crews of our vessels are trained … for when serving in the Central Command area of responsibility, particularly in and around the Gulf.”
The May episode was similar to an April incident in which three Iranian boats approached U.S. Navy vessels. In that incident, the USS Firebolt fired warning shots to chase away the Iranians.
“This kind of activity is the kind of activity that could lead to somebody getting hurt, and could lead to a real miscalculation in the region, and that doesn’t serve anybody’s interests,” Kirby said.
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