The move follows Iran’s recent seizure of two foreign vessels in the Persian Gulf.
Elad Benari, CanadaMay 20, 2023, 2:15 AM (GMT+3)
The Mideast-based commanders of the US, British and French navies transited the Strait of Hormuz on Friday aboard an American warship, The Associated Press reported.
The move follows Iran’s recent seizure of two foreign vessels in the Persian Gulf and indications by US officials that the US military will work to bolster the defensive posture in the Gulf region in response.
In the past two years, Iran has harassed, attacked or interfered with the navigational rights of 15 internationally flagged commercial vessels, officials said.
Most recently, Iran seized the Marshall Islands-flagged Advantage Sweet on April 27 as it traveled in the Gulf of Oman. Six days later, it seized a second ship, the Niovi, a Panama-flagged tanker as it left a dry dock in Dubai.
Friday’s incredibly rare, joint trip by the three navy chiefs aboard the USS Paul Hamilton, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, saw three fast boats of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard approach the vessel at one point.
Guardsmen stood by uncovered machine guns on their decks, while sailors aboard the Paul Hamilton similarly stood by loaded machine guns as others shot photographs and video of the vessels. An Associated Press journalist also accompanied the allied naval commanders.
On the trip through the Strait of Hormuz, at least one Iranian drone watched the Paul Hamilton. Meanwhile, an US Navy Boeing P-8 Poseidon also was overhead. US forces also routinely fly drones in the region as well, while a Navy task force also has put some drones out to sea.
The Strait of Hormuz, a crucial waterway for global energy supplies, has often been a site of tense encounters between Americans and Iranian forces.
In early December, an Iranian patrol boat tried to temporarily blind US Navy ships in the Strait of Hormuz by shining a spotlight toward the vessels and crossing within 150 yards of them.
Last August, an Iranian ship seized an American military unmanned research vessel in the Gulf but released it after a US Navy patrol boat and helicopter were deployed to the location.
Content retrieved from: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/371708.