Iranian Fast Boats Harass US Ships, Submarine in Strait of Hormuz longbeachstar.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from longbeachstar.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Iran Harasses US Ships, Submarine in Strait of Hormuz
Voice of America
11 May 2021, 21:35 GMT+10
WASHINGTON - A U.S. Coast Guard cutter fired two rounds of warning shots at a group of Iranian fast boats after what the Pentagon described as an unsafe and unprofessional encounter in the Strait of Hormuz.
Pentagon press secretary John Kirby called Monday s high-speed encounter, involving 13 Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) boats, significant given that it took place in an area where movement is limited.
According to Kirby, a group of six U.S. vessels, including the guided missile cruiser USS Monterey, had been escorting the guided missile submarine USS Georgia into the strait when the Iranian boats approached them at a very fast speed . acting very aggressively.
Iran rejects US claim that speedboats sparked encounter
The U.S. Navy says it was responding to the sudden approach of 13 Iranian speedboats to U.S. Navy vessels, prompting personnel to fire warning shots. Author: Associated Press Updated: 5:49 AM PDT May 11, 2021
TEHRAN PROVINCE, Iran Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard on Tuesday rejected the U.S. Navy s claim that fast-approaching Iranian speedboats in the Strait of Hormuz sparked a tense encounter in the already sensitive region.
The Guard’s website, sepahnews.com, published a statement Tuesday saying Americans were guilty of using “false narratives and unprofessional behavior” and should more strictly “abide by international regulations.” Specifically, the statement said the Guard s navy warned the U.S. vessels to stop their “provocative and aimless shooting.”
VIRIN: 210510-N-NO146-1005
A group of 13 IRGCN FIAC made a high speed approach on the U.S. Navy guided-missile cruiser USS Monterey (CG 61), patrol coastal ships USS Thunderbolt (PC 12), USS Hurricane (PC 3) and USS Squall (PC 7), Coast Guard patrol boats USCGC Wrangell (WPB 1332) and USCGC Maui (WPB 1304), and the guided-missile submarine USS Georgia (SSGN 729).
The U.S. naval vessels were exercising transit passage in the Strait of Hormuz in accordance with customary international law. The U.S. naval vessels were escorting Georgia, as the submarine was transiting on the surface.
Two of the 13 IRGCN vessels broke away from the larger group, transited to the opposite side of the U.S. formation and approached Maui and Squall from behind at a high rate of speed (in excess of 32 knots) with their weapons uncovered and manned. The remaining 11 FIAC maintained position which places the formation of the U.S. ships in between the two IRGCN groups.
US ship fires warning shots at Iranian vessels
‘UNSAFE’: A US Coast Guard cutter fired the warning shots after 13 armed Iranian vessels maneuvered at high speed toward a US Navy escort in the Strait of Hormuz
AP, WASHINGTON
A group of 13 armed speedboats of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on Monday made “unsafe and unprofessional” high-speed maneuvers toward US Navy vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, and a US Coast Guard cutter fired warning shots when two of the Iranian boats came dangerously close, US officials said.
It was the second time in two weeks that a US ship opened fire to warn the Iranian vessels