19 Iranians killed, 15 injured after Navy vessel hit by friendly fire

The Iranian Fars News Agency reported that one person had been killed and several others wounded in an “accident” involving a Konarak-style support vessel during a naval exercise on Sunday.

Some 19 Iranian have been killed and 15 others injured after an Iranian Navy vessel was reportedly hit by friendly fire during a naval exercise on Sunday. The incident reportedly took place in the waters off of the Jask Port in the Gulf of Oman.

The IRGC-affiliated Tasnim News Agency reported that 19 soldiers were killed and 15 others wounded in an “accident” involving a Konarak-style support vessel during a naval exercise on Sunday. Two of the wounded are in intensive care units. The others are in stable condition, according to the Iranian Fars News Agency. The Iranian military stressed that the incident was being investigated by “expert teams” and that “any speculation” about the incident should be avoided.

Initial reports from Iran stated that the Konarak frigate was “sunk” by a missile fired by Iran’s Jamaran frigate resulting in a number of Iranian soldiers being killed or missing, according to Radio Farda. Some reports indicated dozens of injuries and deaths, with about 40 military personnel estimated to have been on board at the time.

Some reports indicated that the Konarak vessel had brought a target to the area for a test launch of a cruise missile, but was not completely out of the way before the missile was filed.

The Konarak vessel is considered a light support vessel and can carry dozens of crew, but it is unclear how many personnel were on board. The Jamaran vessel, Iran’s first domestically-built destroyer, has the ability to carry about 120 personnel and is armed with surface-to-air missiles, torpedoes and modern naval cannons, according to Iran’s Press TV. The Jamaran has been armed with the Noor surface-to-surface cruise missile as well.

The Iranian Navy regularly conducts military exercises in the Gulf of Oman.

In April, US President Donald Trump said he had instructed the US Navy to fire on any Iranian ships that harass it at sea, a week after 11 vessels from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) came dangerously close to American ships in the Persian Gulf.

Soon after, the head of the IRGC Hossein Salami told Iranian state TV that he had “ordered our naval forces to destroy any American terrorist force in the Persian Gulf that threatens security of Iran’s military or non-military ships.”

Reuters contributed to this report.