US Claims Its Navy Ship Fired Warning Shots at Iranian Vessels in Hormuz Strait
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Two US defense officials claimed on Monday that a US Navy destroyer had recently fired warning shots at Iranian patrol boats in the Strait of Hormuz.
The officials, preferring anonymity, said three warning shots were fired toward four vessels of Iran’s IRGC (the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps) on Sunday after they closed in at a high rate of speed, Reuters reported.
They said the USS Mahan established radio communication with the boats but they did not respond to requests to slow down.
“The Navy destroyer fired warning flares and a US Navy helicopter also dropped a smoke float before the warning shots were fired,” they added.
The officials further said the Iranian vessels came within 900 yards (800 meters) of the Mahan, which was escorting two other US military ships.
In a similar development on August 25, Pentagon officials said Iranian speedboats had “harassed” US warships in the Strait of Hormuz.
They said Iranian boats sped close to two US Navy destroyers with their weapons uncovered in the Strait of Hormuz in an “unsafe and unprofessional” encounter.
A day later, Iran’s Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan vowed that the Islamic Republic would confront any vessel intruding into its territorial waters.
Iran has invariably stressed that it only uses its naval might for defensive purposes and to send across the Islamic Republic’s message of peace and security to other nations.
